Alexandre Pantoja 's reign in the flyweight division (57 kg) came to a shocking end. In the co-main event of UFC 323, held this Saturday (6) in Las Vegas (USA), the Brazilian suffered an arm injury just 26 seconds into the fight and, due to its severity, was unable to continue competing. Therefore, Joshua Van , a sensation in MMA and who has nothing to do with it, won by technical knockout and became the new champion of the category.
The frustrating setback brought an end to Pantoja's eight-fight winning streak. Given his legacy in the UFC flyweight division, the Brazilian is likely to get a rematch with Van or face whoever is the champion when he recovers, possibly in 2026.
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Injury in seconds
Pantoja started the fight aggressively. The Brazilian launched a blitz on Van, but came out worse. When he went to the ground, the veteran fractured his arm in the fall, when he braced himself.
Immediately, Pantoja put his hand on his left arm and signaled to the referee that he could not continue the fight. Visibly upset, the veteran even spoke with Dana White. Even Van offered his support to the Brazilian and celebrated the victory briefly.
Results UFC 323
MAIN CARD
Bantamweight title (up to 61,2 kg): Petr Yan defeated Merab Dvalishvili by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)
Flyweight Championship (up to 57 kg): Joshua Van defeated Alexandre Pantoja by technical knockout (arm injury) at 26 seconds of round 1.
Flyweight (up to 57 kg): Tatsuro Taira defeated Brandon Moreno by technical knockout (punches) at 2:24 of round 2.
Bantamweight (up to 61,2 kg): Payton Talbott defeated Henry Cejudo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Light heavyweight (up to 93 kg): Jan Blachowicz vs. Bogdan Guskov ended in a majority draw (29-28, 28-28, 28-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Manuel Torres defeated Grant Dawson by technical knockout (punches) at 2:25 of round 1.
Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Chris Duncan defeated Terrance McKinney by submission (Anaconda choke) at 2:30 of round 1.
Flyweight (up to 57 kg): Maycee Barber defeated Karine Silva by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Fares Ziam defeated Nazim Sadykhov by technical knockout (elbows) at 4:59 of round 2.
Middleweight (up to 83,9 kg): Brunno Hulk defeated Marvin Vettori by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Jalin Turner defeated Edson Barboza by technical knockout (punches) at 2:24 of round 1.
Light heavyweight (up to 93 kg): Iwo Baraniewski defeated Ibo Aslan by knockout (punch) at 1:29 of round 1.
Middleweight (up to 83,9 kg): Mansur Abdul-Malik defeated Antonio Trócoli by submission (standing guillotine choke) at 1:9 of round 1.
Featherweight (up to 65,8 kg): Mairon Santos defeated Muhammad Naimov by technical knockout (punches) at 21 seconds of round 3.
Pantoja backstage at the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/X/UFC
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