The UFC is headed to Rio in May, and flyweight gold will be on the line at UFC 301.
On Friday, UFC officials announced on social media that Alexandre Pantoja will defend his 125lb title against Steve Erceg at the event, set for the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro on May 4, 2024.
The bout sees Erceg arriving at his first title shot in the company less than one year after joining the roster, and while coming off an impressive knockout of Matt Schnell earlier this month.
The Australian is 3-0 under the UFC banner, and has also picked up wins over David Dvorak and Alessandro Costa. With names like Brandon Royval and Brandon Moreno having already lost to Pantoja, and Deiveson Figueiredo up at bantamweight, the door at 125 has been opened for new blood — with Erceg the first to capitalize.
Erceg is ranked #10 in the weight class, but several of the names ahead of him have fights booked, are injured, or are coming off losses.
Pantoja won the UFC flyweight championship from Moreno last summer, then defended the belt at UFC 296 in December, earning a one-sided decision against Royval, who never seemed to get out of first gear.
UFC 301 currently features the following reported match-ups:
- Alexandre Pantoja (c) vs. Steve Erceg — for the UFC flyweight championship
- Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Iasmin Lucindo
- Paul Craig vs. Caio Borralho
- Joaquim Silva vs. Drakkar Klose
- Alessandro Costa vs. Kevin Borjas
- Jack Shore vs. Joanderson Brito
- Elves Brener vs. Myktybek Orolbai
- Anthony Smith vs. Vitor Petrino
