CHENNAI: On Friday's faceoff at the pre-fight press conference ahead of Sunday's UFC 331 match in Los Angeles in the United States of America, Brazilian flyweight fighter Alexander Pantoja appeared calm and rarely smirked while facing his Burmese-American opponent Joshua Van. Behind his calm face lies an unforgettable night, where Pantoja lost his title to his opponent in December last year due to a severe left elbow dislocation, 30 seconds into the fight. "That was a crazy night for me," he recalled in a virtual interaction with Sony Sports Network. "Until the first 30 seconds of the fight, I did well but after the injury, I got very upset as I lost the title. But I understood very fast. After nine months training and recovery, I have the chance to be in shape one more time. I'm grateful for the opportunity I have right now," he added.
After a long recovery period, the 36-year-old hopes to put on a show and reclaim what he lost that night. "It's not some injury I had in my gym session, but in a title fight where millions of people are watching. Now, I have an opportunity to take everything I lost that night," he said.
But Pantoja is more than just a flyweight fighter. While he defended the flyweight title four times since 2023, his rise was no ordinary feat. During the pandemic, he spent eight months alone in the USA, trying to make ends meet by taking the wheel to deliver food for UberEats and train for fights at the same time. "(Working in another job is) so important. In my whole life I have worked in different jobs to keep my dream alive. I think the best thing I did in my life is try to invest in my dream. When I went back to Brazil years ago, I remember working to pay to buy a good glove or to buy tickets to go to another city to train in another gym to make my techniques better. I always try to do that. That is what I am doing here in America, I invest a lot of money to bring my family, and at some point I need to make extra money to keep my dream alive, you know, and when you want something, you need to use all your weapons to keep the dream alive,” he said.
‘Fight vs Joshua will be interesting’
Since the last fight between the two, Joshua Van has gone on to defend his flyweight title, by beating Tatsuro Taira in May. "It will be a very interesting title fight and everybody will enjoy it. I think Joshua will come much better for that fight right now. I think he made a couple of mistakes with Tatsuro, but I know he will fix that because he's very young, he's tried to come better all the time, but I'm a better fighter and I think it's going to be a very high-level fight,” he signed off.
Watch UFC 331 - Van vs. Pantoja II on Sunday, September 20 6:30 AM IST LIVE on Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV