Joshua Van defeated Alexandre Pantoja in their rematch to successfully make his second UFC flyweight title defense.
For the two fighters, whose views differed over the injury TKO in their first meeting, this bout was a stage for reaffirming the champion’s position.
After making weight, Van expressed his intention to retain the title, and he carried that resolve through in the result.
3-Line Summary
1. Joshua Van defeated Pantoja.
2. He successfully made his second UFC flyweight title defense.
3. The rematch was decided by the result.
Rematchants Both Make Weight at 56.7㎏
According to an Edaily report, Joshua Van recorded 56.7㎏ at the official weigh-in held at a hotel in Los Angeles, California, United States, on September 19 Korea time. Alexandre Pantoja, the former champion from Brazil, also completed the weigh-in at the same weight.
The two fighters faced off for the flyweight title in the main event of UFC 331 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on the 20th. After the weigh-in, the two stood close to each other without shaking hands, also revealing the tension ahead of the rematch.
Van became champion after defeating Pantoja by TKO at UFC 323 in December 2025, when Pantoja was unable to continue because of an elbow injury. Pantoja said the result would not be repeated this time, while Van maintained that his victory in the previous bout was not a fluke. These were the two fighters’ statements before the bout.
Second Defense Following the First Defense
Van previously successfully defended his title for the first time in May of this year by defeating Tatsuro Taira with a sustained striking attack. At that time, his record was reported as 17 wins and 2 losses. Van was born in Myanmar and immigrated to the United States at age 12; he was reported to be the first male champion in UFC history born in Asia.
Pantoja became flyweight champion after defeating Brandon Moreno in 2023 and is a fighter who defended the title four times. Edaily reported that he holds the records for the most UFC flyweight wins, with 14, and the most submission victories, with 6.
According to the title of Edaily’s report on the 20th, Van defeated Pantoja in this rematch to achieve his second title defense. The provided result reports did not present the method of victory or detailed rounds, so the confirmed result extends only to Van’s victory over Pantoja and his successful second defense.
A Victory That Left No Dispute from the First Meeting
The first meeting ended because of Pantoja’s elbow injury. As a result, the rematch drew interest not only as a test of the two fighters’ abilities, but also in how the former champion and the current champion would confront the previous result again.
With this victory, Van once again retained the title in his matchup with Pantoja. Clearer than the strong words before the bout is that the flyweight belt remained with Van and that his defense record increased to two.
References
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