r/MMA • u/inooway • Dec 07 '25
Spoiler [SPOILER] Alexandre Pantoja vs. Joshua Van Spoiler
https://streamff.link/v/b2741ef6777
u/SomeGuyOnThInternet Dec 07 '25
Add that clip to the "sports injuries I hope to never watch again" list. That replay was fucking nasty.
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u/luke363636 Dec 07 '25
Joins the holy trifecta with the Anderson Silva and Chris Weidman injuries
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u/LetsAllPlayNagasaki Dec 07 '25
Kevin Ware. Kenyan Drake, and Tyrone Prothro are up there for me.
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u/Lopsided_Ground_3875 Dec 08 '25
Shogun Rua vs Mark Coleman...
He was looking so ''hot'' before...
All ended after that injury imho
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Dec 07 '25 edited Dec 07 '25
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u/yedi001 Dec 07 '25
My brain was still wired for MMA and was like "I don't remember that name... how would that even happen?"
Looked the name up, saw the first photo of the trail of blood in the snow leading to the body and decided "yeah, I don't need to see what lead up to that," and closed the browser.
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u/ron-darousey Dec 07 '25
I can't believe they kept showing it. I was covering my eyes like a little kid lmao
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u/TheLittleFella20 Dec 07 '25
I unfortunately have been on the receiving end of this type of break. Clean ulna and radius snap. Seeing your own lims be completely malformed is something that never leaves you.
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u/ayyayyron Dec 07 '25
What a horrible
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u/Cube_ Dec 07 '25
definitely a break and looks like it was during twisting so high chance of a spiral fracture which is VERY bad news
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u/Barrington-the-Brit Dec 07 '25
I wonder if people will shit on Van for celebrating the same way weirdo Silva fans shat on Weidman
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u/maicii Dec 07 '25
It does look a bit pathetic lol. At least van it’s 24. Doing it at 30 makes it worse lol
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u/Gambler_Eight Dec 07 '25
You're allowed to be happy over achieving your dream, circumstances be damned.
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u/maicii Dec 07 '25
For sure, but its doesn’t give feels distaful to celebrate it too much you know? Like if you watch the Weismann fight you feel a bit of cringe in the way he celebrated. Idk. At least to me.
Maybe it’s just because i like van but I didn’t feel the same way watching their fight
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Dec 07 '25
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u/mrpyrotec89 Dec 07 '25
He's 35. That definitely gonna effect his fighting ability moving forward
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Dec 07 '25
Yep. I had a similar injury and the same range of motion, never came back.
Pantoja is an animal though so imagine we’ll see him get back, but hope he gets back as close his full potential as possible. But Father Time isn’t gonna help.
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u/ghosttraintoheck Dec 07 '25
What sucks is that for all the advancements we have made with hips, knees etc. Elbow injuries are still hard to treat. Especially if you need a replacement of the joint, most people just choose to fuse their elbow straight or bent because the replacement can't withstand basically any weight.
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u/mrpyrotec89 Dec 07 '25
I think the saying goes, once your 35 your injuries are permanent.
Thats probably the last we'll see Pantoja at full form, even with all the juice.
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u/Moggiiii Dec 07 '25
Ain’t no way…
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u/Anderrrrr Dec 07 '25
Imagine losing your title like that...
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u/Common-Locksmith-235 Dec 07 '25
on the way to building a goat level resume and such a crazy run to lose it like that, fuck I hate this sport sometimes
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u/Trchickenugg_ohe Dec 07 '25
Of all the ways for Pantoja to lose the title, you never expect it to be in an accident like this
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u/commander_wong Dec 07 '25
Taira facepalming on the side because he might have to wait for the rematch to happen first
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u/luke363636 Dec 07 '25
Pantoja is 35, he’s gonna be out for a while if he ever even comes back
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u/kickerz_chance Dec 07 '25
Again, goes to show why DJ's 11 consecutive title defenses might never be broken, so many things need to go right for a fighter to get to 12
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u/tylrrbb Dec 07 '25
No fucking way
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u/aronrodge Dec 07 '25
WHY DO THEY KEEP SHOWING IT???
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u/Sim888 Dec 07 '25
“Oh that is bad!”
lets get 5 more angles and in super slow-mo
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u/Longjumping_Can4557 Dec 07 '25
“Let’s take a look at that on the big screen”
No, Joe, wtf
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u/Sciddaw Dec 07 '25
They just got 30 seconds out of their 25 minute fight, they gotta fill the air.
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u/Anderrrrr Dec 07 '25
That's a horrendous break!
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u/Former-Education9648 Dec 07 '25
They keep confirming it’s a shoulder location. Did we all just collectively hallucinate? Even after it was pointed out that something happened at the elbow, medical came back again and said shoulder. Bonkers.
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u/kickerz_chance Dec 07 '25
Again, goes to show why DJ's 11 consecutive title defenses might never be broken, so many things need to go right for a fighter to get to 12
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u/-WeetBixKid- Dec 07 '25 edited Dec 07 '25
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u/jamila22 Dec 07 '25
UFC just gon keep showing that replay 15 times. Crazy
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u/Unusual_Log_4908 Dec 07 '25
“Let’s take a look at it up on the big screen” - Joe Rogan in front of Van’s mom and the kids 😭😭
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u/ZardozSama Dec 07 '25
The UFC is built on 'Holy Shit' moments. This one is gnarly but it qualifies, and will be talked about and shared on social media much longer than a standard Pantoja defense.
END COMMUNICATION
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u/IAMONEGLOVE Dec 07 '25
Duke just won the ACC with like 14 losses or something but yeah you might be right
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u/Pakochu_ Dec 07 '25
Pantoja is such a nice guy, decided to just hand Van the belt
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u/HarknessLovesUToo Dec 07 '25
He posts to the mat all the time. The grappling gods finally came to balance things out.
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u/surgeyou123 Dec 07 '25
That fucking sucks
Rematch as soon as he's healthy
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u/Inconvenient__Truth_ Dec 07 '25
This is more cursed than Aspinall vs Gane.
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u/PonchoHung Dec 07 '25
Aspinall is apparently not improving very quickly. I'd rather lose a title defense than what he's going through.
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u/neo_1000 Dec 07 '25
Pantoja will get an immediate title shot but I’m afraid he’s at the wrong age to be having this type of injury
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u/CuarentaPaLasCinco Dec 07 '25
Bellator ending
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u/blackupsilon Dec 07 '25 edited Dec 07 '25
This is how we get the first Asian male UFC champion lol.
The gods really must be having a laugh. Like no matter what happens afterwards this will be written in the history books forever.
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u/xandercage49 Dec 07 '25
Not to be pedantic but... first full Asian undisputed champion (in fact, a previous partial Asian champion is even fighting next 😅)
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u/onyxcaspian Dec 07 '25
I mean, this title is kinda "disputed"... Van didn't win it, it was more like Pantoja lost it.
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u/xandercage49 Dec 07 '25
Without engaging in this argument... the point is that Sakuraba got a title back when one-off titles were the norm rather than lineage-based ones. So you have to qualify the title part of it.
And not that you asked, but just to clarify those with partial Asian ancestry off the top of my head, there's BJ Penn, Max Halloway, Robbie Lawler, and Benson Henderson.
Also, I forgot to still include the male qualifier because obviously there's Zhang Weili.
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u/elchupacabra206 Dec 07 '25
wut bout machida yo??
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u/reddituserzerosix Dec 07 '25
Wikipedia says mom is Brazilian:
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Dec 27 '25
If you go by ethnicity or "likeness", it's Machida. If you guy by place of birth and/or citizenship, a lot of Dagestanis qualify. In no way is Joshua Van the first.
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Dec 27 '25
If you go by ethnicity or "likeness", it's Machida. If you guy by geography and citizenship, a lot of Dagestanis qualify. In no way is Joshua Van the first.
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u/JorSimpson45 Dec 07 '25
Jesus fucking Christ I was hyped for this
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u/taran-tula-tino Dec 07 '25
On the bright side, Taira-Van should be a banger while we wait for Pantoja to heal
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u/yeettetis Dec 07 '25
Imagine all of Van opponents injuries themselves and eventually he beats DJ 11 defenses through LUCK, blessed 💀
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u/Lovv Dec 07 '25
Pantoja was fucking shit up. I don't think it will be as good as this was looking to be
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u/mister-monotone Dec 07 '25 edited Dec 07 '25
Oh my god
The replay looks fucked, with Pantojas age it might be over for him
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u/Kassssler Dec 07 '25
Yeah. That's the shit he's gonna need to leave the testing pool to recover from. Fuck this might seriously end his career.
Getting old you feel like Old Logan and shit the body just doesn't heal like it did when I was 20.
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u/Content-Patience-138 Dec 07 '25
I like to tell my younger coworkers that once you hit thirty all your injuries are permanent
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u/RedWing83 Dec 07 '25
Nope.
I am an orthopedic surgeon specializing in elbow surgery. This type of injury mechanism usually causes dislocation of the elbow joint. At first glance, it looked like a dislocation. These injuries are sometimes accompanied by avulsion fractures, which (the fractures) do not require surgery. Dislocations rarely require surgery, but sometimes the ligaments are so badly damaged that the elbow joint cannot stay in place and surgery is necessary.
So, it is most likely a dislocation of the elbow joint that does not require surgery, and he will be ready to fight again in about six months.
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u/TheAngriestPoster Dec 07 '25
I had to sit out for eight months when I had an almost identical injury, and it only came back to 95 percent functionality a year and a half after the fact. He might really be fucked
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u/stonkszz Dec 07 '25
Stop replaying it Jesus Christ
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u/RabbiVolesBassSolo Dec 07 '25 edited Dec 07 '25
“That’s so hard to watch! Now let’s see it from 5 more angles.”
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u/Ghost6x Dec 07 '25
That was one of the best starts of a fight I've seen all year too
We got robbed of a possible FOTY
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Dec 07 '25
Yeah your right. We lost what was going to be a really cool fight to that blunder. Really sucks.
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u/slumberboy6708 Dec 07 '25
For real, I'm so mad. I was so intrigued by this fight and it was fireworks in the few seconds that happened.
I feel so much for Pantoja man
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u/Shakeittillumakeit Dec 07 '25
craziest card ive ever seen
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u/Shakeittillumakeit Dec 07 '25
this card reminds me of last, the old gen is rapidly getting replaced by the new
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u/snappy033 Dec 07 '25
Yeah when they flashed the Gaethje card I was like 😴. Upcoming gen is so good.
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u/Promiseofpower Dec 07 '25
VAN BY FLUKE?!
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u/Isiderdon Dec 07 '25
how is this a fluke? he fully extended his arm while putting all of his weight on it, pantojas fault
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u/TheBurnsideBomber Dec 07 '25
Exactly. Go to any grappling class and day one they teach you to breakfall and specifically never do this because you will break your arm sooner or later. Unless they mean it's a "Fluke" that Pantoja made a huge technical error because he's normally so good.
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u/Imakesalsa Dec 07 '25
Muay Thai head kick catch and throw. Its technique. Watch some muay Thai.
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u/erose27 Dec 07 '25
Yeah he meant to break his arm for sure, brilliant stuff really.
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u/TheAngriestPoster Dec 07 '25
Dude Van did NOT intend for that to happen be serious
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u/SpecialKindOfFall Dec 07 '25
Shout out to Van for holding back there. He recognized that Pantoja was hurt and didn't go in to put on unnecessary damage. Massive respect.
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u/LurkerLew Dec 07 '25
For as terrible of a way as it was to win a belt, Van handled it as good as anyone could
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u/Unlucky_Cable4154 Dec 07 '25
The jumping on the cage like Mcgregor was a bit much
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u/Freshly_Squeezed- Dec 07 '25
I doubt he would’ve gone down either way. You don’t wanna enter the ground game with Pantoja lol
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u/Mobile-Estate-9836 Dec 07 '25 edited Dec 07 '25
I had this same exact injury happen to me earlier this year from Judo randori (BJJ and Judo brown belt). Ironically, it was on the same arm and at almost the same age as Pantoja. I knew it was a dislocation as soon as I saw it happen to him. Its probably not broken, but they'll have to reduce it (put it back into place) in the IR and he'll have to do months of physical therapy. Even 8+ months after injury, I still have popping/clicking and pain in my arm.
There's also a good chance he damaged most of the ligaments in his elbow (UCL probably tore), so even after they pop it back in, he's going to have trouble extending or bending his elbow because of the ligament damage. I think he'll fight again, but IMO he's probably done as a top athlete at this age after it. Not saying I'm the same level of athlete as Pantoja, but I also tore a bunch of ligaments in my other arm (that was from BJJ) and it didn't feel 100% for at least 2 years.
Yes, Jayden Daniels had the same injury, but recovery is harder in combat sports when you're constantly posting on the elbow (to get up, wrestle, etc.). So his recovery timeline is likely going to be much longer.
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u/South-Shake752 Dec 07 '25
so the four last championship fights have been Islam vs Della Maddalena,Weili vs Shevchenko, Aspinall vs Gane and now this. Must be the worst UFC stretch ever.
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u/amillimonster Dec 07 '25
Damn that sucks so much cock. I was ready for a banger but goddamn that’s the fucking worst way to lose your belt. Feel awful for pantoja
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