Michael Bisping do not think Steve Erceg is ready for Alexandre Pantoja.
Pantoja (27-5 MMA, 11-3 UFC) defends his flyweight title against Erceg (12-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) in the main event of Saturday’s UFC 301 (Pay-per-view/ESPN/ESPN+) on Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro.
Bisping marveled at Pantoja’s resume, which includes two wins over Brandon Moreno, two wins over Brandon Royval, as well as top contenders Alex Perez and Manel Kape.
“Alexandre Pantoja, this man is phenomenal,” Bisping said in his Youtube channel. “He’s been through the entire flyweight division: Brandon Moreno, Royvals, Kapes. You name it, he’s been there and done that.
“The man is phenomenal. He has no weak areas. He has a strong mind. He is resilient. It has an incredible gas tank. He can attack, he can fight, he has world-class jiu-jitsu and on top of that he’s a nasty bastard.
Pantoja opened as a big favorite, but the line got closer the week of the fight. The champion is currently a -200 favorite according to FanDuel, while Erceg is a +154 underdog.
Bisping sees Pantoja as a big favorite and would consider a win in Erceg a big surprise.
“Will he be able to do this? (I) love Steve Erceg – great guy. But this is not it,” Bisping said. “It’s just not that. Not now, and I say that in relation to Steve. I wish you all the best, brother. I hope you can prove me wrong, and I really mean that.
“Alexandre Pantoja is very skilled, very experienced. But you never know. All it takes is one shot of these 120-gram gloves. But of course in the main fight I have the one and only Alexandre Pantoja.”
For more information on the card, visit the MMA Junkie events hub to UFC 301.
