Joseph Morales wants a shot at a ranked flyweight after tapping out two opponents in the UFC in 2025, plus two victories on The Ultimate Fighter reality show earlier this year. “Bopo” submitted Matt Schnell
and Alibi Idiris between August and November and now hopes to re-enter the octagon in the first quarter of 2026, and he has an ideal opponent in mind.
“I would love to fight Steve Erceg,” Morales told MMA Fighting. “He’s got a name in the division and he beat Ode [Osbourne]. He’s coming off a win. I think just our skills would match well together. He’s got good grappling and good striking and he’s a really good martial artist. I just think it’d be a good fight for me.”
Morales is targeting a return in March so he can enjoy the holidays without the worry of a training camp and diet, “but I’m just gonna stay ready and see what happens.” Erceg was on a three-fight losing skid against Alexandre Pantoja, Kai-Kara France and Brandon Moreno prior to an August victory against Ode Osbourne.
“I’m patiently impatient,” Morales said. “I just want to take my time and wait and when the things come like that, I’m going to take it with a full opportunity. I’m taking it lightly. When they give me the ranked opponents, I’m ready to dominate. And if I’m not ranked yet, that’s okay, I’m just going to keep winning my fights and keep showcasing and keep being the best that I can be. And the belt will come and the ranked opponents will come and just take it step by step.”
The flyweight division saw many changes at the top in recent months, especially with Joshua Van taking the 125-pound belt away from Alexandre Pantoja due to injury along with massive wins for Tatsuro Taira, Kyoji Horiguchi and Manel Kape. It’s still unclear who is going to get the first crack at Van as further exams showed no fractures or ligament tears to Pantoja’s arm and elbow, but it is still unclear when he can get back to training.
“The division is wide open,” Morales said. “Manel Kape is a great striker, he’s very tough, he hits hard. Horiguchi is one of the best in the sport, he’s a legend right now in our division. Tatsuro is young, he looks unbeatable right now. As a fan, I’m enjoying watching the top guys go out there. As a fighter I’m motivated and preparing for myself to be able to fight those guys and to be able to beat them.”
And even though Morales gives Van credit for being UFC champion, he doesn’t foresee a long reign for the young talent.
“Technically he’s the champion, I can’t take that away from him,” Morales said. “Nobody can, no matter if they agree with the way the fight went or not. He’s the best in the division. Do I think he’s going to be a champion for long? I don’t think so. I don’t think he’s going to have the same reign as Pantoja. Pantoja, I think he’s one of the greatest flyweights of all-time.
“So it’ll be interesting to see how the Horiguchi fight plays out, who’s next with Tatsuro and Manel Kape getting those fights. I think those are the three guys to watch and see who’s gonna get the title shot next.”
