Joshua Van defends flyweight title over Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 331

Joshua Van quieted his naysayers on Saturday, when he successfully defended his title over former champ Alexandre Pantoja via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-47, 50-45) in the main event of UFC 331.

"The Fearless" lived up to his moniker, taking care of business against Pantoja for a second time, and he did so without any controversy during the rematch.

Van first earned the title at UFC 323 in Dec. 2025, when he dethroned Pantoja under unorthodox circumstances. While the fight was ruled a first-round TKO for Van, it ended after less than a minute due to Pantoja dislocating his elbow while bracing for a fall.

While Pantoja spent the time since recovering — Saturday was the Brazilian's first fight since losing the title — Van successfully defended his belt against Tatsuro Taira in May, dispatching the No. 4-ranked contender via fifth-round TKO. And now with a clean victory over Pantoja, there's no questioning the legitimacy of his title reign.

The Myanmar native is now 11-1-0 in the UFC, his lone loss coming back in June 2024.

As for Pantoja, the former champ now drops to 14-5-0 under the banner, with Saturday's loss at Crypto.com Arena marking the first time he's lost back-to-back fights in his near-20-year pro MMA career. He had previously held the flyweight title for two years — including five title defences — since he first earned it in 2023.