At UFC 323, Joshua Van pulled off an incredible upset over long-reigning Alexandre Pantoja for the UFC Flyweight Championship. Now that he’s at the top of the flyweight rankings, there’s only one burning question surrounding his ascension: who will he face in his first defense of the UFC Flyweight Championship?
UFC Flyweight Championship Photo: Flyweight Joshua Van toppled pound for pound Great in Las Vegas
Following his only loss in the UFC to date against Charles Johnson at UFC on ESPN 59 in July 2024, Joshua Van had embarked on a run of supreme dominance at flyweight. Winning his next five in a row, the young phenom was inserted into the co-main event of the final numbered show of the year at UFC 323 for the UFC Flyweight Championship. .
The Burmese cemented his position as the clear No. 1 contender with a stunning victory over Brandon Royval and headed to the Octagon to face then four-time defending champion Alexandre Pantoja.
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Prior to the match with Van, Pantoja had not lost a match in over five years, putting together a monstrous eight-fight win streak. The Brazilian defeated his nemesis Brandon Moreno at UFC 290 and cemented an outstanding legacy as the flyweight titleholder with four straight championship retentions against Royval, Steve Erceg, Kai Asakura and Kai Kara-France.
The preparation for the fight had been immense, with many pundits considering the young and hungry Van as a completely worthy challenger to the veteran Pantoja. Just 26 seconds into the UFC Flyweight Championship match, the incumbent dislocated his elbow after failing to post properly after being pushed to the canvas by “The Fearless.” In one of the more disappointing moments of the year, Van got the win by TKO, making him the new guy flyweight gold standard.
Regardless of the opinion of the spectators, Van is now the new face of the 125-lb division. The 4oz. emerged from his encounter with Pantoja virtually unscathed. A Fight Club representative is expected to defend his newly won title sometime in 2026. However, in terms of potential challengers to his reign, there appears to be a draw as to who could be the next man up for the UFC flyweight championship. The three individuals pursuing this honor are none other than Manel Kape, Tatsuro Taira and former champion Pantoja.
Photo from the UFC Flyweight Championship: Manel Kape shined in the final UFC Main Event of 2025
Manel Kape signed with the promotion in 2021 and initially struggled to get any meaningful momentum going, losing his first two trips to the UFC cage to the aforementioned Pantoja and Matheus Nicolau. However, after these setbacks, “Starboy” would go on to win four in a row, most notably defeating then 20-4 David Dvořák. Unfortunately, he came out on the wrong end of the unanimous decision win over previous rival Muhammad Mokaev at UFC 304.
While the loss certainly took the wind out of his sails, it didn’t take long for the Angola native to quickly climb his way back into UFC Flyweight Championship contention. With three knockout victories as of this writing, Kape ended 2025 for the UFC on an incredibly high note when he defeated the ironclad Royval at UFC Vegas 112.
With his reputation as possibly the best finisher in the flyweight division firmly intact, the 32-year-old may have just punched his ticket to a UFC flyweight championship in the near future.
UFC Flyweight Championship photo Tatsuro Taira stopped enduring legend during return trip to Sin City
When it comes to child prodigies, Tatsuro Taira is perhaps one of the greatest of all time. When he forced his way into the UFC in 2022 after a prolific run on the Japanese regional circuit, he proved he was indeed an upstart flyweight prospect by winning his first five bouts in the organization.
His popularity really started to take off, however, following a thunderous finish over Alex Perez in 2024, earning him the distinction of being the first fighter born in the 2000s to win a UFC main event. It looked like he would be fighting for the UFC Flyweight Championship title in 2025 before an ill-fated showdown with Royval saw him lose for the first time.
After taking almost a year off after the defeat, Taira made a glorious comeback in 2025 by eliminating the once feared South Korean juggernaut Park Hyun-sung, who was also undefeated at the time and also boasted an injury rate of almost 100 percent.
At UFC 323, the Japanese star was tasked with taking on his most legendary opponent yet, battling flyweight great Brandon Moreno. Taira went into the fight as a surprise favorite and proved the betting lines were correct when he defeated the two-time champion with hits in the second round and became the first man to finish him.
UFC Flyweight Championship Photo: Alexandre Pantoja may get a rematch based on a long tenure as flyweight champion
What happened to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 323 was nothing short of tragic. Losing your UFC Flyweight Championship status due to an accidental injury is one of the saddest ways you have to give up your belt, especially after just 26 seconds of action.
At this time, there are no updates on when “The Cannibal” will return to the cage, but given the results of his latest tilt, it’s certain he’ll want to compete as soon as possible.
Fortunately, there is a likely scenario in which Pantoja gets an immediate shot at Van for the UFC Flyweight Championship upon his return to the Octagon once his arm is fully healed. While some may view this as unfounded given the short list of other contenders for the new flyweight king, it is actually not uncommon for longtime title holders to immediately grab a runback with their usurpers.
After his six-plus year reign came to a resounding end at the hands of Chris Weidman, Anderson Silva was given the opportunity to battle his previous challenger for his coveted spot at the top of the middleweight rankings. Also, after five sensational title defenses, Kamaru Usman was given a third fight with division foe Leon Edwards after the former knocked him out with a now-iconic head kick at UFC 278.
Taking this into account, it is not outside the realm of possibility that Pantoja is booked for a second meeting with Van in 2026. Even if the Brazilian were to lose more convincingly to the rising Burmese next time, he will hopefully have put in a much longer performance that he, his team and the mixed martial arts community can be satisfied with.
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