Van vs. Pantoja 2: Pro Fighters Split On UFC 331 Title Fight
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Professional fighters are split on Saturday's UFC 331 flyweight title rematch between champion Joshua Van and former titleholder Alexandre Pantoja.
Van enters as a minus-136 favorite for the Los Angeles card, but seven pros polled by BJPenn.com sided 4-3 for Pantoja reclaiming the belt. The two met last December at UFC 323, when Van captured the title in a closely contested bout.
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Pros Question Van's Ground Game, Pantoja's Layoff
UFC strawweight Gillian Robertson picked Pantoja based on Van's most recent performance. "With Van's last fight, I didn't like what I saw in the grappling," she told BJPenn.com. "I think Pantoja will get it to the ground and dominate." Flyweight Cody Durden backed the Brazilian as well, citing what he's observed in camp. UFC lightweight Diego Ferreira predicted a submission finish for the challenger.
Three fighters favored Van to retain. Bantamweight Dan Ige flipped his prediction from the first fight, saying the champion has improved with each outing. John Castaneda also sided with Van, noting that Pantoja's injury layoff could be a factor in the rematch.
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UFC 331 airs Saturday, September 19 from Los Angeles.
Reported via:
- BJPenn — UFC 331 | Pro fighters make their picks for Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja 2 flyweight title fight
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