''UFC 301: Pantoja vs. Erceg'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

that took place on May 4, 2024, at the

Farmasi Arena Farmasi Arena is an indoor multipurpose arena, located in the region of Barra da Tijuca, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is one of the indoor arena with largest capacity in the country, with 15,430 people for sports and up to 18,768 for concerts. ...

, in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, Brazil.

Background

The event marked the promotion's 12th visit to Rio de Janeiro and first since

UFC 283 ''UFC 283: Teixeira vs. Hill'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 21, 2023, at the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Background The event marked the promotion's return ...

in January 2023. A

UFC Flyweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

bout between current champion

Alexandre Pantoja Alexandre Pantoja Passidomo (born April 16, 1990) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Flyweight Champion. As ...

and

Steve Erceg Stephen Vincenzo Erceg (born July 27, 1995) is an Australian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of July 1, 2025, he is #10 in the UFC flyweight ranki ...

headlined the event. Former WEC Featherweight Champion and two-time

UFC Featherweight Champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight clas ...

José Aldo José Aldo da Silva Oliveira Júnior (; born 9 September 1986), known as José Aldo, is a Brazilian former professional mixed martial artist and professional boxer who competed in the Bantamweight and Featherweight divisions of the Ultimate F ...

made his return in a bantamweight bout against

Jonathan Martinez Jonathan Martinez (born April 20, 1994) is an American professional mixed martial artist. Martinez currently competes in the Bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Martinez from a Salvadoran mother and Mexi ...

, after retiring in September 2022. A lightweight bout between Ismael Bonfim and

Vinc Pichel Vincent Alan Pichel (born November 23, 1982) is an American former professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, achieving a 7-5 record in the promotion. A professional since 200 ...

took place at the event. The pair was previously expected to meet at UFC Fight Night: Almeida vs. Lewis but the bout was scrapped after Bonfim missed weight. A middleweight bout between

Michel Pereira Michel Fagner Lima Pereira (born 6 October 1993) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2011, he formerly competed ...

and

Makhmud Muradov Makhmud Muradov (born February 8, 1990) is an Uzbek professional mixed martial artist. He formerly competed in the Middleweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Makhmud Muradov was born on February 8, 1990, in Sov ...

was expected to take place at the event. However, Muradov withdrew due to an infection. He was replaced by Ihor Potieria, who was also scheduled to compete against

Sharabutdin Magomedov Sharabutdin Magomedovich Magomedov (; born 16 May 1994) is a Russian professional mixed martial artist former Muay Thai and Lethwei fighter. He currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Early l ...

at UFC on ABC: Whittaker vs. Chimaev on June 22. A featherweight bout between

Jean Silva Jackson Jean da Silva (born December 13, 1996) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of April 15, 2025, he is #11 in the UFC featherw ...

and William Gomis was scheduled for this event. However, the bout was eventually cancelled due to Gomis suffering a weight cut related illness. During the event's broadcast, former

UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight class ...

(also the 2005 PRIDE Middleweight Grand Prix Champion)

Maurício Rua Maurício Milani Rua (; born 25 November 1981), also known as Shogun, is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He competed in the Light Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light H ...

was announced as the next "pioneer wing"

UFC Hall of Fame The UFC Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors mixed martial artists and MMA personalities, established and maintained by the U.S.-based mixed martial arts promotion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). In a ...

inductee during June's International Fight Week festivities in Las Vegas. Rua was already a

r himself after a light heavyweight bout that took place in November 2011 at

UFC 139 ''UFC 139: Shogun vs. Henderson'' was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. It was the first UFC event in San Jose, the longtime home and base ar ...

against the former PRIDE Welterweight, PRIDE Middleweight and former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion

Dan Henderson Daniel Jeffery Henderson (born August 24, 1970) is an American former mixed martial artist and Olympic wrestler, who last competed as a Middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was the last Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champi ...

(also a former UFC Middleweight and

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

title challenger) was inducted in the "fight wing" section as part of the 2018 class.

Results

Bonus awards

The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses. *Fight of the Night: No bonus awarded. *Performance of the Night: Michel Pereira, Caio Borralho, Maurício Ruffy, and Alessandro Costa

References

{{2024 in mixed martial arts 2024 in UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship flagship events Sports competitions in Rio de Janeiro (city) 2024 in Brazilian sport Mixed martial arts in Brazil May 2024 sports events in Brazil

Background

Results

Bonus awards

See also

References