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Collector profile “The Cannibal”

Alexandre Pantoja

Pantoja is the rare long-reigning champion whose card history starts late and thin: he fought in the UFC for three years without a card, and everything begins in 2020, in the last months of Topps' UFC licence. That makes his rookie a two-card argument inside a single year — 2020 Topps UFC Knockout #95 on March 25, then the 2020 Topps UFC flagship #93 with the printed RC logo on August 26 — and it means there is no Pantoja prospect card, no TUF-era issue, nothing from the 2017–2019 Topps run. The five-fight title reign from UFC 290 through UFC 317 all happened on Panini base cards and, after March 2024, on Topps Chrome, and his autographs stayed scarce until the champion-era certified issues arrived.

2020Rookie year
#95Rookie card
10Key cards
  • UFC debutJanuary 28, 2017 · UFC on Fox 23
  • DivisionsFlyweight
  • FromRio de Janeiro, Brazil
Rookie card#95
01

The rookie case

#95
Rookie card · working pick Rookie disputed

2020 Topps UFC Knockout #95

The earliest Alexandre Pantoja card that any source reached this research records, issued three years and nine fights into his UFC run. Knockout is a small, hit-heavy product — Cardboard Connection describes four autographs and four relics per box, all numbered /200 or less — so the base cards were printed in far smaller quantity than a flagship base card, and the parallel ladder tops out at a Gold 1/1. He has no autograph or relic in the product.

Where sources disagree

Which of the two 2020 cards is 'the' rookie is a genuine split. MMA Rookies picks Knockout #95 (earlier release); Cardboard Connection's printed-RC marking sits on the flagship #93 instead. Sellers use 'RC' for both. TCDB, which would normally settle an RC flag, is not reachable.

Commonly misidentified

SportsCardsPro's item-details field says 'Is Rookie Card: No' on both #95 and #93 while the sold listings on the same pages call them rookie cards — the same database-field quirk noted elsewhere in this archive, not a real disagreement.

High confidence×1View sources & research
Rookie card case Card record
02

Key Pantoja cards

10 cards chosen for significance, not completeness; autographs and numbered cards follow below.

2020 Topps UFC #93 Rookie
2021 Panini Prizm UFC #46
2022 Panini Prizm UFC #178
2022 Donruss UFC #43
2024 Topps Chrome UFC #10
2025 Topps Chrome UFC #188
03

Card history

Pantoja beat Eric Shelton at UFC on Fox 23 on January 28, 2017 and then fought nine times before a card of him existed. The 2017 Topps Chrome, Knockout and Museum products and the 2019 Topps Chrome UFC set all passed him over, and Collectibles.com states flatly that he 'debuted as a Rookie in 2020'. There is no Pantoja prospect card, no TUF-era issue and nothing at all from the 2017-2019 stretch of Topps' first UFC licence.

Everything therefore begins in 2020, and the rookie is a two-card argument inside a single year. 2020 Topps UFC Knockout, released March 25, carries base #95, which MMA Rookies calls his True Rookie Card on release-date grounds; the 2020 Topps UFC flagship followed on August 26 with #93, and it is the flagship checklist that actually prints the 'RC' tag. Sellers use 'RC' for both and sources disagree on which is the rookie. Both are base-only cards — Knockout has no Pantoja autograph or relic — and the flagship was the last Topps UFC base set before the licence moved, so #93 with its Camo /25, Red /8 and Platinum 1/1 is also the end of an era.

Panini's licence opened with the Prizm UFC 'Debut Edition' on April 28, 2021, where Pantoja is #46 with a sixteen-step colour ladder ending at Black 1/1 and no autograph anywhere in the product. 2022 gave him Prizm #178 on March 25, with the First Off The Line shimmer tier on top of the usual run, and Donruss #43 on May 6. The Donruss Signature Series card that shares that number, #43, is his earliest certified autograph — more than two years after his first card, and a subset issue rather than a signed base card, which is the mistake it invites.

He took the flyweight title from Brandon Moreno at UFC 290 on July 8, 2023, three months after that year's Panini Prizm UFC had already shipped, and Panini's licence ran out before it produced a champion issue for him. Topps' return caught up instead: 2024 Topps Chrome UFC, March 20, 2024, puts the reigning champion at base #10, the low checklist position Topps reserves for titleholders, with an Allen & Ginter insert and a Main Event Autograph in the same product. The refractor ladder runs Speckle /299 down through Red /5 to the SuperFractor 1/1.

2025 Topps Chrome UFC, released June 27, 2025, has him at #188 alongside Joshua Van's rookie at #136, with the Chrome Veteran Autograph CVA-AP as the veteran counterpart to Van's rookie signature — the last autograph issued while Pantoja still held the belt, since Van took it in 26 seconds at UFC 323 on December 6. 2026 Topps Chrome UFC then moved him to base #40 and added the on-card Marks of Champions Autograph MOC-AP on May 8, 2026, a subset limited to titleholders and issued five months after the reign ended. That card honours the reign rather than the standing, and it is where his autograph run stands now.

Sources for every paragraph

04

Autographs

3 certified autographs in the archive.

2022Donruss UFC Signature Series #43 Auto
2025Topps Chrome UFC Chrome Veteran Autographs #CVA-AP Auto
2026Topps Chrome UFC Marks of Champions Autographs #MOC-AP Auto
05

Card eras

2017–2019
A champion with no cards

Pantoja beat Eric Shelton at UFC on Fox 23 on January 28, 2017 and fought nine times before a card of him existed. MMA Rookies lists nothing before 2020 and Collectibles.com states outright that he 'debuted as a Rookie in 2020', so the 2017 Topps Chrome/Knockout/Museum products and 2019 Topps Chrome UFC all passed him over.

2020
Rookie year, twice

2020 Topps UFC Knockout, released March 25, 2020, carries base #95 — MMA Rookies calls it his True Rookie Card. Five months later the 2020 Topps UFC flagship put him at #93 with an RC designation on the checklist. Both are base-only: Cardboard Connection's Knockout checklist shows no Pantoja autograph or relic in the product.

2021–2022
The Panini years

Panini's debut Prizm UFC (April 28, 2021) gave him #46 and the full Prizm colour ladder down to Black 1/1. 2022 brought Prizm #178 (March 25) and Donruss #43 (May 6), and the Donruss Signature Series #43 is the earliest certified Pantoja autograph found this research — with Holo Purple Laser /15, Gold /10, Black 1/1 and Holo Pink Laser 1/1 parallels.

2023
Champion, off-cycle

He took the flyweight title from Brandon Moreno by split decision at UFC 290 on July 8, 2023 — three months after 2023 Panini Prizm UFC had already shipped (April 28), so the belt arrived between releases and Panini's UFC licence ran out before it produced a proper champion issue.

2024
Topps returns, he is the champ

2024 Topps Chrome UFC (March 20, 2024) put the reigning flyweight champion at base #10 — a low number, the way Topps signals a titleholder — with an Allen & Ginter insert AAG-1 and a Main Event Autograph in the same product. The refractor ladder runs Speckle /299 down through Red /5 to SuperFractor 1/1.

2025
Last year of the reign

2025 Topps Chrome UFC (June 27) has him at #188 with a Chrome Veteran Autograph CVA-AP and a retail Fired Up insert FUP-3. He defended against Kai Kara-France at UFC 317 the next day, then lost the belt to Joshua Van in 26 seconds at UFC 323 on December 6, 2025 — a TKO after his arm gave out — so the CVA-AP is the last autograph issued while he was champion.

2026
Former champion, on-card

2026 Topps Chrome UFC (May 8, 2026) moves him to base #40 and adds the on-card Marks of Champions Autograph MOC-AP, a subset reserved for titleholders — issued after the belt was gone. He lost the rematch to Van by decision at UFC 331 on September 19, 2026.

06

Rookie parallels

Base
—
Unnumbered
Green
—
High confidence
Blue
/75
High confidence
Purple
/25
Verified
Red
/8
High confidence
Gold
1/1
High confidence
07

Sets

Where Pantoja's key cards come from.

08

Buying & wanted

Wanted by FightCardboard
  • 012020 Topps UFC Knockout #95 in the low parallels — Purple /25, Red /8 and the Gold 1/1 — the rookie in the colours collectors actually chase
  • 022022 Donruss UFC Signature Series #43, his earliest certified autograph, especially Holo Purple Laser /15 and Gold /10
  • 032026 Topps Chrome UFC Marks of Champions Autographs #MOC-AP, the on-card champion signature, in the numbered refractors
  • 042025 Topps Chrome UFC Chrome Veteran Autographs #CVA-AP, the last autograph issued during the title reign (Gold /50, Orange /25, Black /10, Red /5)

Offer one

Available here

Nothing from this archive in the vault right now. Selling one?

Sources & research Verified×3High confidence×10Probable×3

Every factual claim on this page, the evidence behind it, and an honest confidence level. Where sources disagree the disagreement is kept, not quietly resolved.

High confidence

Alexandre Pantoja's rookie card: 2020 Topps UFC Knockout #95 — Alexandre Pantoja.

MMA Rookies names '2020 Topps UFC Knockout #95 Alexandre Pantoja' his True Rookie Card and lists '2020 Topps UFC #93' as the other rookie card. Release dates settle the order: Cardboard Connection dates 2020 Topps UFC Knockout to March 25, 2020 and the 2020 Topps UFC flagship to August 26, 2020, so Knockout #95 is the earlier of the two by five months. SportsCardsPro independently confirms both the set and the number. Nothing earlier exists in any source reached this research — Collectibles.com states he 'debuted as a Rookie in 2020' despite his January 2017 UFC debut, so the 2017–2019 Topps UFC products contain no Pantoja card.

High confidence

Pantoja beat Eric Shelton at UFC on Fox 23 on January 28, 2017 and then fought nine times before a card of him existed. The 2017 Topps Chrome, Knockout and Museum products and the 2019 Topps Chrome UFC set all passed him over, and Collectibles.com states flatly that he 'debuted as a Rookie in 2020'. There is no Pantoja prospect card, no TUF-era issue and nothing at all from the 2017-2019 stretch of Topps' first UFC licence.

High confidence

Everything therefore begins in 2020, and the rookie is a two-card argument inside a single year. 2020 Topps UFC Knockout, released March 25, carries base #95, which MMA Rookies calls his True Rookie Card on release-date grounds; the 2020 Topps UFC flagship followed on August 26 with #93, and it is the flagship checklist that actually prints the 'RC' tag. Sellers use 'RC' for both and sources disagree on which is the rookie. Both are base-only cards — Knockout has no Pantoja autograph or relic — and the flagship was the last Topps UFC base set before the licence moved, so #93 with its Camo /25, Red /8 and Platinum 1/1 is also the end of an era.

High confidence

Panini's licence opened with the Prizm UFC 'Debut Edition' on April 28, 2021, where Pantoja is #46 with a sixteen-step colour ladder ending at Black 1/1 and no autograph anywhere in the product. 2022 gave him Prizm #178 on March 25, with the First Off The Line shimmer tier on top of the usual run, and Donruss #43 on May 6. The Donruss Signature Series card that shares that number, #43, is his earliest certified autograph — more than two years after his first card, and a subset issue rather than a signed base card, which is the mistake it invites.

High confidence

He took the flyweight title from Brandon Moreno at UFC 290 on July 8, 2023, three months after that year's Panini Prizm UFC had already shipped, and Panini's licence ran out before it produced a champion issue for him. Topps' return caught up instead: 2024 Topps Chrome UFC, March 20, 2024, puts the reigning champion at base #10, the low checklist position Topps reserves for titleholders, with an Allen & Ginter insert and a Main Event Autograph in the same product. The refractor ladder runs Speckle /299 down through Red /5 to the SuperFractor 1/1.

High confidence

2025 Topps Chrome UFC, released June 27, 2025, has him at #188 alongside Joshua Van's rookie at #136, with the Chrome Veteran Autograph CVA-AP as the veteran counterpart to Van's rookie signature — the last autograph issued while Pantoja still held the belt, since Van took it in 26 seconds at UFC 323 on December 6. 2026 Topps Chrome UFC then moved him to base #40 and added the on-card Marks of Champions Autograph MOC-AP on May 8, 2026, a subset limited to titleholders and issued five months after the reign ended. That card honours the reign rather than the standing, and it is where his autograph run stands now.

High confidence

2020 Topps UFC Knockout #95 — Alexandre Pantoja.

Verified

2020 Topps UFC #93 — Alexandre Pantoja.

High confidence

2021 Panini Prizm UFC #46 — Alexandre Pantoja.

High confidence

2022 Panini Prizm UFC #178 — Alexandre Pantoja.

High confidence

2022 Donruss UFC #43 — Alexandre Pantoja.

Probable

2022 Donruss UFC Signature Series #43 — Alexandre Pantoja.

Verified

2024 Topps Chrome UFC #10 — Alexandre Pantoja.

Verified

2025 Topps Chrome UFC #188 — Alexandre Pantoja.

Probable

2025 Topps Chrome UFC Chrome Veteran Autographs #CVA-AP — Alexandre Pantoja.

Probable

2026 Topps Chrome UFC Marks of Champions Autographs #MOC-AP — Alexandre Pantoja.