Joshua Van

Van's cleaner boxing and combination work gave him the more consistent offense across the championship rematch. Pantoja repeatedly tried to smother Van and start grappling exchanges, but Van managed the pressure and kept returning to his striking. Van took over the fifth round, hurt Pantoja and scored a late knockdown before the judges awarded him the unanimous decision.

Key moments

• Van's boxing and combination work produced the steadier scoring throughout the rematch.
• Pantoja looked to close distance and smother Van, but could not keep the champion there.
• Van dominated the final round, hurt Pantoja and scored a late knockdown to seal the decision.

Taira controlled the early portions with takedowns and top pressure, but Van's striking gradually took over before a body attack and follow-up punches forced the fifth-round stoppage.

Key moments

• Taira banked the early fight with repeated takedowns and long stretches of top control.
• Van dropped Taira with a right hand late in round two and started to flip the fight's rhythm.
• By the third and fourth rounds, Van was landing jabs, right hands, and knees as Taira's shots became easier to read.
• The finish came at 1:32 of round five after Van hurt Taira to the body, opened up along the fence, and secured the TKO in a Fight of the Night performance.

More fight videos

Van won the UFC flyweight title in a fight that ended almost immediately and in bizarre fashion. After catching a kick, he watched Pantoja suffer a gruesome arm injury on the fall, and the bout was waved off 26 seconds into round one.

Key moments

• Van caught Pantoja's kick in the opening exchange.
• Pantoja's arm gave way as he tried to brace his fall to the canvas.
• The referee stopped the fight at 0:26 of round one once the injury was obvious.
• The abrupt result made Van the new flyweight champion and the youngest title-holder in the division.

Van and Royval completed their scheduled three-round flyweight bout at UFC 317. The contest went to the judges rather than ending inside the distance. The official result awarded Van the unanimous decision over Royval.

Key moments

• Van and Royval completed their three-round flyweight bout.
• The contest went to the judges rather than ending inside the distance.
• The official result awarded Van the unanimous decision over Royval.

Van broke Bruno Silva down over three rounds with speed, volume, and cleaner counters. A huge second round left Silva surviving rather than solving the puzzle, and Van's pressure in round three eventually produced the late stoppage.

Key moments

• Van's jab and counter punching repeatedly beat Silva to the target in the second round.
• He knocked Silva down, swarmed with ground-and-pound, then dropped him again with a knee before the round ended.
• Silva tried to rally with body kicks and desperation offense in round three, but Van never gave him room to reset.
• The fight ended at 4:01 of the third after Van forced a final knockdown and stayed on the finish.

Van defeated Rei Tsuruya by unanimous decision at UFC 313 after repeatedly denying Tsuruya's takedown attempts and winning the striking exchanges.

Key moments

• Tsuruya repeatedly pursued takedowns, but Van's sprawls and takedown defence prevented sustained control.
• Van landed varied strikes to Tsuruya's head and body while keeping most of the fight standing.
• Van increased his output as the bout progressed and widened the gap in the later rounds.
• All three judges awarded Van the fight 30-27 after three rounds.

Van had to solve Durden's wrestling and pace before taking over the final 10 minutes. Durden secured repeated takedowns early, but Van's jab, uppercuts, and volume striking steadily flipped the fight, and he closed hard enough to earn a unanimous decision on scores of 29-28, 30-26, and 30-27.

Key moments

• Durden banked much of round one with takedowns and fence control, even as Van landed elbows and a few sharp counters.
• Van's uppercuts and multi-punch combinations started taking over in round two as Durden's offense slowed.
• By the late rounds, Van was defending shots more cleanly and landing first and last in prolonged exchanges.

Van survived a chaotic, high-damage fight with Chairez inside the Sphere and won all three cards 29-28. Chairez's kicking game and right hand hurt him early, but Van answered with savage body work in round two and then sealed the bout with takedowns and top control in the third.

Key moments

• Chairez chopped at Van's lead leg in round one and dropped him late with a straight right.
• Van turned round two into a brawl, badly hurt Chairez to the body, then escaped a tight guillotine after getting rocked himself.
• In round three, Van mixed body shots with a late takedown and heavy top pressure to close the fight.
• The official cards were 29-28 across the board for Van after one of the wildest prelim fights on the card.

Van's pressure and heavier hands appeared to carry the first two rounds, but Johnson stayed active enough to hang around and then landed the uppercut that changed everything.

Key moments

• Johnson bothered Van early with low kicks and activity, but Van rallied late in round one and knocked him off his feet.
• Johnson opened the third by landing clean rights and then walked Van into a thunderous uppercut.
• The knockout came at 0:20 of round three, handing Van his first UFC loss.

Van opened 2024 by weathering a difficult first round and then overwhelming Bunes late in the second. Bunes mixed kicks, takedowns, and mount to take the opener, but Van's pace and body work broke him down before a barrage of knees and punches forced the stoppage.

Key moments

• Van came out aggressively in round two, punishing the body in the clinch and punishing stuffed takedown attempts with elbows.
• As Bunes tired, Van chased him across the cage with punches, knees, and more body work.
• The finish came at 4:31 of round two after Van dropped Bunes and swarmed with punches and elbows.

Van dug out a 29-28 sweep over Borjas after losing the first round and then steadily drowning him with pressure. Borjas hurt him early with a right hand and jump knee, but Van's body work, jab, and late takedowns swung the final two frames.

Key moments

• Borjas won the opening round by cracking Van with a right hand, a jump knee, and steady leg kicks.
• Van changed the fight in round two by ripping the body, landing a head kick, and keeping Borjas on the back foot.
• He kept the same pressure in round three, added a slam and top control, and closed the round on the mat.

Van's UFC debut turned into a high-speed split-decision win over veteran spoiler Zhumagulov.

Key moments

• Zhumagulov took the opening frame with body-lock takedowns, leg kicks, and enough boxing to edge the striking.
• Van roared back in round two, rocking Zhumagulov with head kicks and unloading when the veteran was hurt.
• The third round stayed frantic, but Van's jab, straight punches, and superior volume repeatedly drove Zhumagulov backward.
• Van earned the split decision by scores of 28-29, 29-28, and 29-28 in his first UFC appearance.

Van showed a less common submission wrinkle by catching Suazo in a calf slicer late in the second round.

Key moments

• Van finished the fight at 4:23 of round two.
• The official method is listed as a calf slicer.
• The bout took place at Fury FC 62 in Houston.

Van blew Trujillo away with a head-kick knockout in under two minutes at Fury FC 60.

Key moments

• Van ended the bout at 1:36 of the opening round.
• The official finish was a knockout by head kick.
• The fight took place on the Fury FC 60 prelims in Houston.
• It was another early stoppage during Van's first year as a pro.

Van collected another early Fury FC finish by stopping Obando with punches in the first round.

Key moments

• The stoppage came at 3:08 of round one.
• The fight was held at Fury FC 57 in Houston.
• It continued Van's quick-start finishing pattern on the regional scene.

Van suffered his first professional defeat when Jackson submitted him with only two seconds left in round two.

Key moments

• Jackson finished the bout with a rear-naked choke at 4:58 of round two.
• The fight took place at Fury FC 55 in Houston.
• Van returned the following month and immediately resumed winning.

Van's professional debut ended with a distinctive body-shot stoppage of Tony Esquivel at Fury FC 52.

Key moments

• The finish came at 2:14 of round two.
• The listed method is TKO from knees to the body.
• This was Van's professional debut at Fury FC 52.