In 14 UFC fights, Alexandre Pantoja has won 11 of them, putting a 5-fight winning streak together since 2021.

He outpointed Brandon Moreno in a close split decision to become champion and then dispatched Brandon Royal in another decision victory just 5 months later.

He’s finished 6 of his UFC 11 wins – 4 by submission and 2 by TKO.

The Brazilian has beaten the former champion Moreno twice, Royval twice as well as other top-ranked fighters – he’s a veteran of the UFC octagon with a wealth of experience.

Steve Erceg has had 3 UFC fights, winning 2 by decision and 1 by TKO. He’s only been signed to the UFC for 11 months.

Erceg is a big underdog and should he win this fight it would be a massive upset. In total, he’s had 13 fights and won 6 by submission (including fights outside of the UFC).

Although Erceg did deliver a fantastic one-punch KO in his last fight against Matt Schnell, Pantoja isn’t going to be as easy to set up and with it being in Pantoja’s backyard it’s hard to see the upset here.

This is a fantastic fight – potential for fight of the night.

Jose Aldo, ‘The King of Rio’ returns to the Octagon against Jonathan Martinez, ranked 13th in the Bantamweight division and an extremely tough opponent for the 37-year-old Brazilian.

Both guys are aggressive and love to fight, Martinez is a front-foot pressure fighter whereas Aldo likes to strike at distance and punish the legs of his opponents.

Aldo has gone 6-7 in his last 13 fights, with his last fight ending in a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili back in August 2022.

Martinez is riding a 6-fight winning streak, he’s young and hungry and he’s looking to punch his own ticket into the division top 10 with a win over a UFC legend.

Ultimately, Martinez’s pressure will be too much for the aging Aldo to deal with.

Anthony Smith has 5 wins and 5 losses in his last 10 fights. He’s not beaten anyone not named Ryan Spann since 2021 and since then has lost 3 and won 1.

The 35-year-old is traveling a long way to meet Vitor Petrino, a Brazilian fighter who’s undefeated at 11-0 and 10 years younger.

Coming through Dana White’s Contender Series, the Brazilian brings 2 TKO/KO victories and 1 submission into the Octagon in just 13 months.

It’s his 3d fight since November and he’ll be looking to take the next step in his career against a ‘gatekeeper’ in Smith, in front of his home fans.

Michel Pereira has won 7 fights in a row, including wins over Santiago Ponzinibbio and Michał Oleksiejczuk.

Pereira has won his last two fights in round 1 via TKO and submission. His dynamic style and flashy striking is tough for anyone to deal with.

Ihor Potieria is coming into the fight on less than a month’s notice and tends to try and walk through strikes to land his own.

Potieria has had 5 fights in the UFC and has won just 2, and of the 3 losses they have all been by KO/TKO – signs of a weak chin against a striker known for KOs…

Pereira’s capoeira style and high pace will be enough to catch Potieria early.