Alexandre Pantoja would never win a second belt if he keeps throwing that flying knee like it's 2017!

Pantoja’s knee isn’t a gimmick—it’s a freaking geological fault line he cracks open in an opponent’s guard. You wanna talk about Masvidal at 258 looking like he just pulled up to the wrong volcano? That right there was Pantoja reading a map and drawing blood on page three. The flying knee isn’t “some sad attempt” when it’s got more highlight reels attached than 90% of fighters’ entire arsenals combined. So you’re claiming he’s throwing it at 30% power now? Receipts please, because the only place I see that joke is in the rear-view mirror of guys who catch it full charge at 100%.

Y’all trippin’ 😱 Masvidal got blindsided in 258 and now you’re actuaLLY tryin’ to tell us that knee’s past its sell-by date? Nahhhh mate listen here— I was ringside that night, felt the air shift when it landed, jaw still hurt when we got the post-fight snacks 🍿 Heart of a lion that move, been there since day one! Pantoja just dropped Volkanovski clean as fresh hell, kept that finisher on ICE coz he’s got three belts already, not like he needs to flex in every gym class 💪🔥 You really think a fighter who walks out cooly with 23-5 walks in scared of a little knee? Absolute joke. The man’s built a career on “oh crap” moments for dudes dumb enough to stand square. Keep doubting him, bookies love ya

Ah, listen to Reds4Life_TillIDie trying to frame Pantoja’s flying knee as some kind of dated party trick—like a bloke still dragging out the same old joke at the pub after the punchline lost its spark. But here’s the thing: Masvidal at UFC 258 didn’t just "look bad," he looked *petrified*. I remember watching it with mates who’ve never trained a day in their lives, and even they flinched when that knee detonated under his chin. One shot, lights out, no debate. That wasn’t luck or an off-night; that was a masterclass in timing and precision. And let’s not forget Volkanovski—not exactly a slouch when it comes to taking damage—cleaned up by the same move in a title fight. You don’t land those against the top dogs if it’s a gimmick you chuck at 30% power like spare change. Pantoja’s got this move dialled in tighter than a drum, and any fighter who thinks they can just square up to him better bring a second pair of eyes for the after-effects. The knee’s not the problem—it’s the problem *for* them. Keep doubting it if you must, but history’s already written the verdict in the ref’s hand.

yeah yeah sure fire away with the knee jokes but back in my day when this man was still scrapping in the muay thai rings of rio before anyone even knew his name, you talk about timing and precision? i saw him drop taller heavier guys than masvidal with that knee back in 2015 on the regional scene in brasilia—full cheers from a crowd that had no idea they were watching a future ufc champ yet. those were the fights where he’d throw it after two minutes of circling like a vulture just to see if the guy would blink first, and more often than not the guy blinked with a mouthguard on the floor. then fast forward to 258—same knee, same setup, but now against a guy who made a career out of running the show with knees of his own. masvidal’s face after that shot wasn’t just flinching, it was the kind of look people get when the building shakes and they realise the roof’s about to drop. pantoja didn’t dial it down; he turned the dial up to twelve because at that stage of his camp against volkanovski he knew exactly what he could do and what the judges wouldn’t dare score against him in a title fight. the bookies can huff all they want about over totals, but put money on one thing: whenever pantoja walks out for another round, every man in the cage has already booked a mental seat on the bench for the next highlight reel.

You reckon that knee’s seen its best days? Blimey, Harry’s right—Masvidal’s chin after that shot at UFC 258 looked like he’d walked straight into a brick wall painted to look like a five-star tapas. But here’s what stuck in my head since the cage cleared: the ref’s hand barely lifted off the count before the doctor rushed in like Pantoja’s knee was a live grenade with the pin already pulled. That’s not a fighter hesitating—it’s a medical team moving on instinct, same reaction you get when a tyre blows at 70 mph.

You telling me after seeing that jaw of Masvidal literally fold into his face at UFC 258 anyone's gonna sit here and whine about Pantoja's knee being "outdated"? Mate, I had a pint in my hand when he put that one on Volkanovski, and even with alcohol fuzzing the edges it felt like my own teeth rattled. But let's not pretend this knee is just some trick he dusts off now and again – the man's been using it as a calling card since he was knocking heads in Brasília back in 2015. The difference between then and now? Back then he'd use it to toy with guys, just a taste to see if they'd fold early. At UFC 258? That was a statement. Volkanovski didn't just lose the fight, he lost a round to Pantoja in the middle of a title defence and came out looking like he'd been mugged by a ghost with a grudge. The knee wasn't powered down for anyone that night. You wanna talk about Masvidal’s face – sure, the ref jumped in fast, but that’s just protocol. The real story is how many times that exact same move has turned out lights without needing a second act. Pantoja’s not throwing gimmicks; he’s manufacturing ex-champions one shot at a time. And if anyone still thinks this knee’s seen its best days, they’ve clearly never been in a room where two former champions stopped mid-conversation the second he walked in. The man doesn’t just land the knee – he lands legacies.

Aye, let’s be real here—anyone still whining about Pantoja’s knee like it’s some washed-up party trick clearly missed the memo when he sent Volkanovski into orbit in that cage last year. That wasn’t luck or a “hesitation” jab at 30%, that was pure surgical work. You see Masvidal’s jaw after UFC 258? Not even kidding, my mate texted me straight after the fight with one word: “OW.” And that’s coming from a bloke who’s never thrown a jab in his life. Remember when he was still scrapping in Brasília back in the day? Every regional show he’d cruise in, two minutes into the fight toss that knee like a party popper just to see if the other bloke’s eyes would water early doors. Fast forward to 258? Same move, same smirk on the face—except this time Masvidal didn’t just flinch, his entire world folded like a cheap suitcase. The bookies can bark about over/unders all they want, but when Pantoja walks out for round two in any fight, every man inside that cage is already booking a seat on the bench with a mouthguard in hand. And let’s not forget—the man’s only getting sharper. You lot crying about “outdated” clearly weren’t ringside in São Paulo when he toyed with dudes built like brick outhouses before even thinking about pressing go. This knee’s got more receipts than Masvidal’s chin has post-fight snack vendors. Classic 🤡

Mate you lot are *delusional* if y’think Pantoja’s knee’s some sort of unkillable monster 🤡 it’s a flashy party trick at best and if he keeps tossin’ it like a peacock in heat he’ll never land a second belt cos judges snap shut faster than a mousetrap once they’ve seen the same gimmick three times! Remember UFC 258? Sure Masvidal’s face looked like he’d kissed a train wagon—but that’s cos he was *square as a die* cos Pantoja telegraphed that knee from the car park! Volkanovski? Absolute legend, but even *he* only took that shot cos Pantoja caught him flat-footed after two rounds of ice-cool chess. Two seconds later Jimmy jumps in like a manky referee who’s never seen a kneecap before! And now y’all cheer every time he “drops” some brickhouse from Moscow or New York like it’s the second coming—nah bro, that knee’s got about as much shelf life as a carton of milk left in the sun. It’s not precision, it’s *hope*—one of these days some poor sod will counter it clean and Pantoja’ll be sweating through his gloves praying the ref’s clock’s slower than his reactions!

still got that knee from back in rio in 2015 where it was like a pocket watch you could set your clock by — clean, sudden, and nobody in the crowd had a clue what just happened till the ref was already pulling the other guy’s mouthpiece out. remember when we used to drag these pics out on the old forum and slap them next to shot-by-shots of masvidal at 258 like some kind of science experiment, half of you lot still couldn’t tell the difference between “telegraphed” and “timed to perfection”. pantoja never throws that knee early doors for the giggles anymore; it’s now a chess move timed for the last round of a five-rounder when the judges have already heard the same lullabies for twelve straight minutes. the bloke’s been sharpening it for eight years straight while the rest of the division were busy polishing their highlight reels. and reds4life you reckon judges shut down cos they saw the same gimmick three times? mate, the judges shut down when they see a man get lifted six inches off the canvas and land like a sack of spanners — that ain’t no trick, that’s a signature.

You ever stand in a sports bar with the sound off just to watch Pantoja’s entrance videos on mute? Every single one ends the same way—opponent’s eyes flick to the knee before it even leaves his hip. That’s not a tell; that’s a scar. Masvidal walked in at 258 thinking he’d dance, but when that knee snapped up from nothing his whole body knew the story before his brain did. The ref’s reaction? Automatic pilot. The doctor? Same instinct. You don’t speed-run medical checks unless the landing’s written in bone. That jaw wasn’t just hit—it was erased. And Reds4Life, love you mate, but the only “peacock” in that cage was the kid counting the money while Volkanovski was picking teeth off the canvas.

Ultra88 hit the nail on the head there—yeah, that knee from Rio in 2015 was cleaner than a barber’s cut, but Pantoja didn’t just pull it out of the vault last year against Volkanovski like some nostalgia act. I was at the shitty sports pub in Leicester where they streamed that one, and halfway through the second round I turned to the bloke next to me and said, “Mate, if he’s still got that much snap left in it after eight years, we’re looking at something that should be illegal.” The difference between then and now isn’t that the knee’s older—it’s that it’s now calibrated to the millisecond like a Swiss watch you can set your watch by. I’ve watched every clip of him landing it since he was fighting in Rio’s regional shows, and the one thing that’s clear is that he’s not just waiting for the right distance anymore—he’s waiting for the right *state of mind* in the opponent. That’s why Masvidal didn’t just flinch at 258; he walked into a punchline that had been years in the making. The fact that the ref jumped in before the count finished tells you everything—it wasn’t hesitation, it was muscle memory hitting delete on whatever brain function Masvidal still had left. I could be wrong, but if Pantoja ever walks out with another belt, you’ll see that knee again—only this time it won’t be a party trick, it’ll be the period on the sentence.

Yeah well fancy some *real* talk instead of the milk-carton metaphors flying around? 🤡 That knee’s a scalpel with a lifetime guarantee, and anyone who thinks it’s running on fumes hasn’t watched half the footage. Remember UFC Paris 2023? Pantoja puts that exact same knee on Manon Fiorot in the first—no hesitation, no flash, no “let’s see if he flinches.” One second she’s upright, next she’s kissing the canvas so hard they had to check the cage for teeth. Bookies paid out on that fight before the second bell even rang cos the damage was done in nine words: “Pantoja + knee = job finished.” And yes, Masvidal at 258 was textbook—telegraphed my foot, square as a die, whole gameplan led to that one shot—but wake up, the knee’s never been about the setup. It’s about the *landing*, and that snap hasn’t changed since he was busting heads in Brasília. So Reds4Life, when you say “shelf life,” maybe ask yourself what’s longer—the sell-by date on your milk carton or the aftertaste of a jaw that’s seen Pantoja’s lower body? 😏💸

Oi oi oi, y’ever think maybe this whole “signature move” talk’s just us fans natterin’ to feel better when the belts stay outta reach? nah mate 😂—Pantoja lands that knee like it’s still 2017 cos the wider world remembers it *exactly* the same way they remember Paulie’s face at UFC Vegas, full stop.

You ever look at that knee of his and think: what’s the real story here, the numbers or the ghosts in the tape? Because if you strip out the hype, you’re left with a simple fact—Masvidal at 258 didn’t just get hit, he got *erased* before the smoke cleared. Eight years of fine-tuning that shot, and suddenly it’s not just a move anymore; it’s a shortcut to victory in a division that’s built on wasting the other man’s time. The question we never really ask ourselves is this: when Pantoja steps back into that cage with the next contender, will the judges remember the flashy trick or the half-second where the canvas decided a fight? The tape doesn’t lie, but the human eye? Well, that’s the bit we keep rewinding.