Demetrious Johnson thinks Alexandre Pantoja should walk away.
Pantoja lost a five-round decision to flyweight champion Joshua Van in Saturday’s UFC 331 main event. It was his attempt to win back the title he lost to Van in December. Johnson, the most decorated flyweight in UFC history, laid out the problem on his YouTube channel.
It’s hard because he was a champion, and he’s beat Brandon Moreno, he’s beat Brandon Royval. I don’t know if he’s beat Manel Kape, but Manel Kape is going to be fighting Joshua Van next.
The issue, as Johnson sees it, is that Pantoja has run out of meaningful opponents at 36.
So it’s kind of interesting because he’s in the no-man’s land where he’s beaten everyone already. The only guys he can fight now are just newcomers. He’s not going to fight Kyoji Horiguchi because they’re teammates.
His advice was direct.
Dog, ride off into the sunset. You don’t need to get hit. You don’t need concussions anymore. You’ve done your thing.
Pantoja has been fighting professionally since 2007. He won the flyweight title from Brandon Moreno in 2023 and defended it four times, more than anyone in the division since Johnson’s own run.
Johnson also praised Van, who is 24 and improved as the fight wore on. He scored the bout closer than one judge, who turned in a 50-45 card.
