UFC 301, in Rio de Janeiro this Saturday, allowed Brazilian fighters to shine. If Alexandre Pantoja retained his flyweight belt by beating Steve Erceg, legend José Aldo made a triumphant return against Jonathan Martinez. For his part, Michel Pereira produced the performance of the evening.
Back in the cage at UFC 301 in front of his home crowd in Rio de Janeiro, José Aldo lived up to his legendary status. Almost two years after his last fight, which ended in a defeat against Merab Dvalishvili, the 37-year-old Brazilian won this Saturday by unanimous decision against the American Jonathan Martinez.
Pantoja keeps his belt
Considered one of the best fighters in history, who had remained undefeated for almost 10 years, José Aldo dominated his opponent practically from start to finish, ranked 14th among the contenders for the -61 kg belt. (owned by Sean O’Malley).
In the other expected fight of the evening, Alexandre Pantoja retained his flyweight belt. The Brazilian still had some difficulties against the Australian Steve Erceg but won by unanimous decision. The number ten in the division held the shock during the five rounds but therefore suffered defeat after eleven victories in a row.
The incredible submission by Michel Pereira
The performance of the evening will remain that of Michel Pereira, who extinguished Ihor Potieria in the first minute of the first round. After knocking the Ukrainian to the ground, the Brazilian performed a somersault to pass his rival’s guard, before putting him to sleep on a monstrous guillotine.
As a reminder, the Frenchman William Gomis was to be present during this numbered evening but the fight against Jean Silva was canceled. The “Jaguar” suffered health problems after severe complications during the cutting phase, arriving weak at the weigh-in.
