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Joshua Van: the Youngest Champion at 125 lb and What Comes Next
Joshua Van has defended the UFC flyweight title twice in 2026, most recently over Alexandre Pantoja on 19 September. His next opponent is not yet booked, though Manel Kape is the name in the frame. Here is his record, his style and how we would price a Kape fight.
Written by: Marcus Oyelaran·Checked by: Maren Holt·Updated:
Joshua Van won the UFC flyweight title at 24 and has defended it twice since, the second time on 19 September 2026 when he beat Alexandre Pantoja over five rounds at UFC 331 in Los Angeles. He has no fight booked. The obvious next challenger is Manel Kape, and the two have been talking up that fight in public since UFC 331, but until the UFC names a date, any bet on Joshua Van's next fight is a bet on a matchup that may change.
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Joshua Van at a glance
| Full name | Joshua Van Bawi Thawng |
| Born | 10 October 2001, Hakha, Chin State, Myanmar (age 24) |
| Nickname | “The Fearless” |
| Based | Houston, Texas; trains at 4oz Fight Club |
| Division | Flyweight (125 lb), champion |
| Record | 18-2-0 (W-L-D) |
| Height and reach | 65 in and 65 in (UFC.com) |
| UFC debut | 24 June 2023, split decision over Zhalgas Zhumagulov |
| Ranking | Champion; No. 6 pound-for-pound on UFC.com |
UFC.com notes two more facts that bettors will hear on every broadcast: he is the only Myanmar-born fighter to compete in the UFC, and at 24 years and 57 days he became the second-youngest champion in the promotion's history, behind Jon Jones.
Record
Eighteen wins, two losses. Half the wins came by knockout, two by submission and seven on the scorecards. Both losses were finishes, which is worth remembering when pricing method markets for a fighter whose own fights rarely look safe.
| Date | Event | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Sep 2026 | UFC 331, Los Angeles | Alexandre Pantoja | Won, unanimous decision, five rounds, title defence |
| 9 May 2026 | UFC 328 | Tatsuro Taira | Won, TKO round 5 (1:32), title defence |
| 6 Dec 2025 | UFC 323 | Alexandre Pantoja | Won, TKO (arm injury) round 1 (0:26), title won |
| 28 Jun 2025 | UFC 317 | Brandon Royval | Won, unanimous decision |
| 7 Jun 2025 | UFC 316 | Bruno Gustavo da Silva | Won, TKO round 3 |
| 8 Mar 2025 | UFC 313 | Rei Tsuruya | Won, unanimous decision |
| 13 Jul 2024 | UFC on ESPN 59 | Charles Johnson | Lost, KO round 3 |
| 13 Jan 2024 | UFC Fight Night | Felipe Bunes | Won, TKO round 2 |
| 18 Dec 2022 | Fury FC 72 | Cleveland McLean | Won, submission (rear-naked choke), Fury FC title |
| 19 Dec 2021 | Fury FC 55 | Devon Jackson | Lost, submission (rear-naked choke) |
Since the Johnson loss he has won eight in a row, three of them for the title. The first title win needs context: it ended after 26 seconds when Pantoja was hurt, so the September rematch, a clear five-round decision, is the better guide to how the two compare.
What is known about Joshua Van
He is a volume striker. UFC.com lists his style as freestyle, but his numbers say boxer-puncher with a high work rate:
- 8.26 significant strikes landed per minute at 58 % accuracy. That rate is far above most of the division.
- 5.83 absorbed per minute. He gives a lot back. His fights are exchanges, not clinics.
- 87 % of his significant strikes land standing, 8 % in the clinch and 5 % on the ground.
- 75 % takedown defence, and 0.70 takedowns of his own per 15 minutes. He rarely wrestles.
- Average fight time 14:14. He goes deep and keeps finishing late, as the fifth-round stoppage of Taira showed.
The strength is pace over time: he finished Taira in the fifth round and won all five rounds against Pantoja on at least one card. The weakness is the other side of the same habit: a fighter who absorbs nearly six significant strikes a minute is hittable, and his one UFC loss was a knockout. A puncher who can land clean early is the style that gives him most trouble on paper.
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Next title defence: chances and why
No fight is booked, so this section prices the matchup most likely to be made. If the UFC chooses a different challenger, the numbers below do not apply.
Our estimate against Manel Kape: Joshua Van wins 54 % of the time, a fair price of about 1.85 (roughly 17/20). This is our estimate, not a bookmaker price, and Kape's side is 46 %, around 2.17.
Why we make Van a small favourite:
- Form. Eight straight wins, including two five-round title fights in 2026. He has shown he can hold his pace for 25 minutes.
- Volume. Over five rounds, a fighter landing more than eight significant strikes a minute builds a lead on the cards even when the other man lands the harder shots.
- Youth. He turns 25 in October and has had three title fights in under ten months.
- Against us: Kape's power. Yahoo Sports reported on 1 October that Kape has won four in a row by knockout since his loss to Muhammad Mokaev at UFC 304. Against a champion who absorbs 5.83 strikes a minute, that is a real threat.
- Against us: the 2024 knockout. Van has been stopped once in the UFC, by Charles Johnson in the third round. Our 54 % is close to even for that reason.
Our view on how it ends: Van by decision or a late stoppage, Kape by knockout in the first half of the fight. Few outcomes sit in between.
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Moneyline, once the fight is official. Run any quoted price through our odds calculator to see the chance it implies. Above 54 % for Van, the price is shorter than our estimate.
Method of victory. Nine of his wins came by knockout, and two of his three title fights ended inside the distance. “Van by KO/TKO” usually pays more than his moneyline, and fits a fighter who stopped Taira in round five.
Total rounds and goes the distance. With Van, the case for over 2.5 rounds is his pace; the case for under is how much he gets hit.
Round betting. Long prices, but useful if you hold a firm view. Our view gives Kape most of his chance in rounds one to three and Van most of his after that.
In-play. The best betting on a Van fight is often between rounds. If he survives the early power and the volume starts to tell, his price shortens fast. Read our in-play betting guide before trying it on a five-minute round.
Petr Yan, champion one division up, defends at UFC 333 and has his own profile and trilogy estimate; for the women's bantamweight title fight in November, read our Kayla Harrison page. Market rules for every fight are in the UFC betting guide.
Where to watch
His last title fight, UFC 331, went out on Paramount+ in the United States, according to the event's Wikipedia page. Elsewhere the rights sit with national broadcasters and the UFC's own platforms, and they vary by country, so the UFC's website is the place to confirm who shows the next card where you are.
A number of betting sites stream events to logged-in customers, and we have marked the ones that offer it. Coverage is uneven: one site may carry a whole card and another only part of it, so check before the event rather than after the first round.
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A note on early prices
Prices on an unannounced fight are thin and can move sharply when the bout is confirmed, delayed or changed. If you bet before the UFC makes it official, read the site's settlement rule for a fight that does not happen. Keep stakes small on a single fight, and see the responsible gambling page if you need to set limits.
Who is Joshua Van fighting next?
Nobody yet. As of early October 2026 no opponent is booked. Van and Manel Kape have been talking up a title fight in public, and Kape sits in the top two of the UFC flyweight rankings, but the UFC has not announced it.
What is Joshua Van's record?
18 wins and 2 losses: nine by knockout, two by submission and seven by decision. He was knocked out by Charles Johnson in 2024 and submitted by Devon Jackson in 2021, before the UFC.
How old is Joshua Van?
He was born on 10 October 2001, so he is 24 and turns 25 on 10 October 2026. UFC.com lists him as the second-youngest champion in UFC history.
Where is Joshua Van from?
He was born in Hakha, Chin State, Myanmar, and fights out of Houston, Texas, where he trains at 4oz Fight Club.
Can I bet on a fight that has not been announced?
Some sites open prices on likely matchups early. Read the rules first: if the fight does not take place, most sites void the bet, and a fight on a later date may be treated as a new event.
Where this comes from
- full name, date and place of birth, team, full professional record, title historyen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Van2026-10-05
- record, nickname, striking and defence numbers, win methods, fighter facts, no upcoming fight listedufc.com/athlete/joshua-van2026-10-05
- UFC 331 date, venue, result, US broadcasteren.wikipedia.org/wiki/UFC_3312026-10-05
- UFC 323 title win detailsen.wikipedia.org/wiki/UFC_3232026-10-05
- Van vs Kape not yet booked; Kape's four knockouts in a rowsports.yahoo.com (MMA Knockout on SI), 1 October 20262026-10-05
- official flyweight rankingsufc.com/rankings2026-10-05
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