Myanmar’s Van defeats Pantoja to retain flyweight title in UFC 331

Joshua Van retained his undisputed UFC flyweight title at UFC 331 in Los Angeles, outpointing former long-reigning champion Alexandre Pantoja by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-47, 50-45). The 24-year-old from Myanmar relied on precise striking through five rounds to claim a clear judges' verdict and remove lingering doubts after their first meeting was halted by an accidental injury. Van—who became the first UFC champion from Myanmar—had previously defended the belt against Tatsuro Taira in May but had not yet secured an outright win over Pantoja after their December encounter ended when the Brazilian suffered an accidental elbow dislocation 26 seconds into the fight. After Saturday’s victory Van said, according to the event coverage, “A lot of people said that was an accidental win … well, doubt me now,” and his record moved to 18-2. The fight opened with Pantoja taking Van down and threatening with heavy punches and knees, while Van landed a slicing elbow in return. As the fight progressed Van adjusted to a more tactical approach, landing stiff left jabs in the second round and a damaging combination in the third. Pantoja controlled the fourth with takedowns but failed to secure a submission, and in the fifth Van knocked Pantoja down with an overhand right en route to the decision. UFC 331’s undercard delivered multiple notable finishes. In the co-main event Arman Tsarukyan finished Mauricio Ruffy with a right elbow and knockout with four seconds remaining in the first round, extending Tsarukyan’s win streak to six and prompting him to call for a title shot at lightweight champion Justin Gaethje. Former Bellator two-division champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire scored his first UFC stoppage, defeating Dooho Choi by TKO at 3:28 of round one. In heavyweight action, Sean Sharaf produced a 12-second TKO of Gable Steveson—the third-fastest knockout in UFC heavyweight history—after catching Steveson early in the opening exchange.