Alexandre Pantoja and Kayla Harrison are on another level.
To UFC fans, Pantoja and Harrison are two of the absolute best mixed martial artists on the planet. But at their home gym, American Top Team, they are simply known as the two hardest workers.
“Dan Lambert said the other day that there’s nobody—me and Kayla Harrison are the only two that do every class, every drill,” Pantoja said in his UFC 317 post-fight interview. “I’m always the hardest worker in the room. I try to be my best. I’m the one training the most in the gym.
“We have 100 fighters in American Top Team, and I feel I’m one of the more training guys, with the best fighters in the world. That’s amazing. I have so much inspiration in the gym. Kayla Harrison is a huge inspiration for us.
All of Pantoja’s hard work paid off once again at UFC 317. Stepping into the co-main event spotlight, ‘The Cannibal’ delivered another lights-out performance, dispatching challenger Kai Kara-France in the third round via rear-naked choke.
Alexandre Pantoja is on a collision course with the red-hot Joshua Van
Not only did the victory serve as Pantoja’s fourth successful flyweight title defense, but it also etched his name in the history books, giving him the most finishes in UFC flyweight history, surpassing both Demetrious Johnson and Deiveson Figueiredo.
As for what comes next, Pantoja has already accepted the challenge of streaking Myanmar sensation Joshua Van.
After securing an impressive third-round TKO against Bruno Silva at UFC 316, Van stepped back inside the cage at UFC 317 on a mere three weeks’ notice for a clash with the flyweight division’s top-ranked contender, Brandon Royval. What went down was one of the greatest fights in UFC history, as Van and ‘Raw Dawg’ pummeled one another from pillar to post for 15 brutal minutes.
In the end, it was Van who came out on top via unanimous decision, setting the stage for a massive showdown with ‘The Cannibal’ later this year.
