Joshua Van

Joshua Van Bawi Thawng (; born October 10, 2001) is a Burmese and American professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Flyweight Champion. Van is the first fighter from Myanmar to sign with the promotion. At UFC 323, he became the UFC's first Asian-born male champion and the first champion to be born in the 2000s. As of September 22, 2026, he is #6 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings.

Background Van was born on October 10, 2001 in Hakha, in the Chin State of western Myanmar, to a family of five siblings. Due to a country ridden with military and political conflict, his family moved to Malaysia when he was ten. In 2013, at the age of twelve, Van migrated with his family to the United States, settling in Houston.

Mixed martial arts career Early career Van made his amateur MMA debut in December 2020. He accumulated a 4-0 record (2 KOs) in the regional Texan promotion Fury FC before turning professional.Joshua Van, Tapology, retrieved 09/21/2026.

Van made his professional MMA debut in October 2021. He continued to fight exclusively for Fury Fighting Championship, where he acquired a 7–1 record including in the main event of Fury FC 72 on December 18, 2022, where he submitted Cleveland McLean in the second round to win the promotion's Flyweight title.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Van was scheduled to face Kevin Borjas on August 8, 2023, at Dana White's Contender Series 57, but he was pulled in order to face Zhalgas Zhumagulov at UFC on ABC 5 on June 24, 2023. This made him the first Burmese fighter to sign with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He won the fight by split decision.

The bout between Van and Borjas was rescheduled on November 11, 2023, at UFC 295. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Van faced Felipe Bunes, replacing Denys Bondar on January 13, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 234. He won the fight by second-round technical knockout.

Van was scheduled to face Lucas Rocha, replacing Jose Johnson on April 6, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 240. However, Rocha withdrew due to injury and the bout was scrapped.

Van was scheduled to face Su Mudaerji on June 1, 2024, at UFC 302. However, Su pulled out in late April due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Tatsuro Taira. In turn, both fighters were moved to UFC on ESPN 58 on June 15, 2024 and Van ended up being scheduled to face Tagir Ulanbekov instead. However, the bout was cancelled when Ulanbekov weighed in at 129.5 pounds, three and a half pounds over the flyweight non-title fight limit.

Van faced Charles Johnson on July 13, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 59. He lost the fight via knockout in the third round.

Van faced Édgar Cháirez, replacing Kevin Borjas on September 14, 2024, at UFC 306. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Van faced Cody Durden on December 7, 2024, at UFC 310. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Van was scheduled to face Bruno Gustavo da Silva on March 8, 2025, at UFC 313. However, Silva pulled out due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Road to UFC Season 2 flyweight winner Rei Tsuruya. He won the fight by unanimous decision.

Van's bout with Bruno Gustavo da Silva was rescheduled and took place on June 7, 2025 at UFC 316. Van won the fight by technical knockout late into the third round.

Van stepped in on three weeks short notice to face former LFA Flyweight Champion and UFC Flyweight Championship challenger Brandon Royval at UFC 317 on June 28, 2025, after Manel Kape was forced to withdraw from the bout due to a broken foot. Van won the fight against Royval by unanimous decision. This fight earned him his first Fight of the Night award. Van and Royval landed a total of 419 significant strikes, which broke the record for most significant strikes landed in a three-round UFC fight and flyweight bout.It would also be awarded Fight of the Year in the 17th Annual World MMA Awards.

Flyweight Championship Van faced Alexandre Pantoja for the UFC Flyweight Championship on December 6, 2025 at UFC 323. Van defeated Pantoja by technical knockout 26 seconds into the first round when Pantoja sustained an arm injury from falling to the canvas, after having a kick attempt caught by Van. At 24 years old, Van became the second-youngest champion in UFC history, behind Jon Jones, and the first fighter born in the 2000s to win a UFC title. He also became the UFC's first Asian-born male champion.

Van was scheduled to make his first title defense against Tatsuro Taira on April 11, 2026 at UFC 327. However, due to a knee injury, Van withdrew from the bout, so the bout was postponed to May 9, 2026 which took place at UFC 328. He successfully defended the title and won the fight via technical knockout in the fifth round. This fight earned him a $100,000 Fight of the Night award.

Van defended his championship against Alexandre Pantoja in a rematch on September 19, 2026 at UFC 331. He won the fight by unanimous decision. This fight earned him another $100,000 Fight of the Night award.

Personal life Van's father died in 2017 and as of July 2025, he lives with his mother. Van is a Christian.

Van is an avid fan of McDonald's and has mentioned to various media sources that he eats it for breakfast every morning, even during training camp.

Championships and accomplishments

Ultimate Fighting Championship UFC Flyweight Championship (One time, current) Two successful title defenses Tied (Deiveson Figueiredo & Brandon Moreno) for third most title fight wins in UFC Flyweight division history (3) Second youngest champion in UFC history (24 years, 57 days) First Burmese-born champion in UFC history First UFC champion born in the 2000s Second Asian-born male champion in UFC history Fight of the Night (Three times) Second highest significant strikes landed per minute in UFC history (8.26) Highest significant strikes landed-per-minute in UFC Flyweight division history (8.26) Highest striking differential in UFC Flyweight division history (2.43) Most significant strikes landed in UFC Flyweight division history (1411) Second most total strikes landed in UFC Flyweight division history (1825) Highest significant strike accuracy in UFC Flyweight division history (57.6%) Tied (Alexandre Pantoja) for the second longest win streak in UFC Flyweight division history (8) Fifth most wins in UFC Flyweight division history (10) Tied (Tim Elliott & Joseph Benavidez) for most decision wins in UFC Flyweight division history (7) Tied (Deiveson Figueiredo, Dustin Ortiz, Alex Perez & John Lineker) for third most knockouts in UFC Flyweight division history (4) Tied (Kai Kara-France & Manel Kape) for second most knockdowns in UFC Flyweight division history (8) UFC Honors Awards 2025: President's Choice Fight of the Year Winner UFC.com Awards 2025: Ranked #2 Fighter of the Year, Fight of the Year & Half-Year Awards: Best Fight of the 1HY 2026: Half-Year Awards: Best Fight of the 1HY Fury Fighting Championship Fury FC Flyweight Championship (One time; former) World MMA Awards July 1, 2024 – December 31, 2025 Fight of the Year July 1, 2024 – December 31, 2025 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year ESPN 2025 Breakout Fighter of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year Sherdog 2025 Male Fighter of the Year 2025 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year Fight Matrix 2025 Most Improved Fighter of the Year MMA Junkie 2025 Breakout Fighter of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year CBS Sports 2025 UFC Fight of the Year theScore 2025 Breakout Fighter of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year The Wrightway Sports Network 2025 Breakout Fighter of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year MMA Mania 2025 #3 Ranked Fighter of the Year 2025 #4 Ranked Fight of the Year MMA Fighting 2025 #5 Ranked Fighter of the Year 2025 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year 2025 First Team MMA All-Star Uncrowned 2025 #4 Ranked Male Fighter of the Year 2025 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year Cageside Press 2022 Flyweight Prospect of the Year 2025 Fight of the Year

UFC Flyweight Bout Records Fastest knockout/finish in a UFC flyweight title fight (0:26) Third fastest knockout/finish (0:26) Second highest striking differential (+95) Second most significant strikes landed (204) Fourth most significant strikes landed (181) Fifth most significant strikes landed (165) Sixth most significant strikes landed (156) Second most distance strikes landed (181) Fourth most distant strikes landed (160) Fifth most distant strikes landed (153) Sixth most distant strikes landed (144) Third most significant head strikes landed (158) Fourth most significant head strikes landed (138) Sixth most significant head strikes landed (131) Second most significant body strikes landed (49) Third most total strikes landed (259) Sixth most total strikes landed (209) Third most total strikes attempted (392) Second most total head strikes landed (228) Most total strikes landed in a round

Mixed martial arts record

|Win |align=center|18–2 |Alexandre Pantoja |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 331 | |align=center|5 |align=center|5:00 |Los Angeles, California, United States

|Win |align=center|17–2 |Tatsuro Taira |TKO (front kick to the body and punches) |UFC 328 | |align=center|5 |align=center|1:32 |Newark, New Jersey, United States

|Win |align=center|16–2 |Alexandre Pantoja |TKO (arm injury) |UFC 323 | |align=center|1 |align=center|0:26 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

|Win |align=center|15–2 |Brandon Royval |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 317 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

|Win |align=center|14–2 |Bruno Gustavo da Silva |TKO (punches) |UFC 316 | |align=center|3 |align=center|4:01 |Newark, New Jersey, United States

|Win |align=center|13–2 |Rei Tsuruya |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 313 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

|Win |align=center|12–2 |Cody Durden |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 310 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

|Win |align=center|11–2 |Édgar Cháirez |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 306 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

|Win |align=center|9–1 |Kevin Borjas |Decision (unanimous) |UFC 295 | |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |New York City, New York, United States

Joshua Van

Bron en licentie