Alexandre Pantoja Breaks Silence with Rocky Quote After UFC

Alexandre Pantoja has broken his social media silence for the first time since losing his UFC 331 flyweight title rematch to champion Joshua Van. The former champion shared a lengthy, inspirational quote from the movie Rocky Balboa to address his second consecutive defeat.

Pantoja took to Instagram on Sunday, September 20, to thank fans for their support. His main message was a direct quote from the fictional boxer Rocky Balboa. "I'll tell you something you already know: The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows," Pantoja wrote. He continued with the movie's famous lines about resilience. "It ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done." His personal addition was brief. "Thank you all for your words and continued support," he said. This public response signals his mindset after a tough setback.

At UFC 331 on Saturday, September 19, in Los Angeles, Joshua Van defended his flyweight title against Pantoja by unanimous decision. The scores were 50-45, 49-46, and 48-47. This was a rematch of their December 2025 bout at UFC 323, where Van won in just 26 seconds after Pantoja injured his arm. The second fight was a five-round war that many are calling one of the greatest in flyweight history. Both fighters earned a $100,000 Fight of the Night bonus for their efforts. The event drew an announced crowd of 19,357 fans and generated a live gate of $8.3 million.

Back-to-back losses to the champion create a difficult path back to title contention for the 30-7 Brazilian. Pantoja won the UFC flyweight title in 2023 against Brandon Moreno. He successfully defended it four times against fighters like Brandon Royval and Steve Erceg before losing to Van. This latest defeat marks his sixth career loss by decision. However, his fighting spirit remains a signature trait. Pantoja now has seven post-fight bonuses in UFC flyweight bouts, tying him for second-most in divisional history.

The event set several notable benchmarks beyond the main event. Betting favorites won seven of the twelve bouts. The total fight time for the card was one hour, fifty-three minutes, and eleven seconds.

• Alexandre Pantoja lost a unanimous decision to Joshua Van in the UFC 331 main event on September 19.
• He broke his silence on social media, posting a Rocky Balboa quote about perseverance after the loss.
• The fight was a rematch; Van also won their first meeting in 26 seconds at UFC 323 in December 2025.
• Pantoja's seven fight-night bonuses tie him for second-most in UFC flyweight history.

With Van likely to face Manel Kape next, Pantoja must now regroup.