Joshua Van is a unique presence in the world of MMA. The reigning UFC Flyweight Champion had one of the most interesting rises to the top in the history of the promotion. The 2001-born fighter is the only current champion born in the 2000s and the second youngest UFC champ ever, only behind Jon Jones. He is also the first fighter from Myanmar who signed with the UFC, making history within the company even before his first bout. 

Unfortunately for Van, he was born in a part of Myanmar where political and military conflicts were an everyday occurrence. Due to the situation, his family first moved to Malaysia before they permanently settled in Houston, USA. There, young Joshua developed a love for mixed martial arts, and a decade later, he became a UFC champ. Before joining UFC, Van was fighting under the banner of Fury Fighting Championship. Even at Fury, Van was a champion, securing the flyweight title in 2022 after submitting Cleveland McLean. 

Van wrapped up his FFC career after that win and a title, and moved to UFC with an 7-1 record. Initially, he was supposed to fight at Danna White’s Contender Series 57, but the plans shifted, and he was instead scheduled to face Zhalgas Zhumagulov at UFC on ABC 5 on June 24, 2023. With that fight, he became the first Burmese fighter to sign with the company and to win under their flag. After winning his first bout via a split decision, Van set the world of UFC on fire. 

What followed were wins against Kevin Borjas via unanimous decision at UFC 295: Prochazka vs. Pereira. After that win, he recorded his first UFC knockout after taking out Felipe Bunes at UFC Fight Night: Ankalaev vs. Walker 2. There, Joshua Van announced himself as a power puncher and a potential future star in the company. Unfortunately, what followed was a setback, and his first career loss in the UFC, when he lost to Charles Johnson via KO/TKO at UFC Fight Night: Namajunas vs. Cortez. 

All of a sudden, Joshua Van was once again at the beginning. After three initial wins, he was rumoured to be in the mix for a title fight. Those plans were scrapped, and Van was expected to rake up a few more wins before anyone took him seriously again. Luckily, for all of us fans of MMA, Van took his task seriously. He followed up a loss with five consecutive wins. First, he won three duels via unanimous decisions after taking down Edgar Chairez, Cody Durden, and Rei Tsuruya. Next, after landing a series of punches on Bruno Silva, he got a KO/TKO win at UFC 316, showcasing to the world that he is champion material after all. 

After a win vs. Silva, UFC decided that Van is only a couple of steps away from fighting for the flyweight title. For years, the division was dominated by Alexandre Pantoja, and his head was the main prize for Van if he was to beat Brandon Royval. Brandon was a title contender for years, and with a unanimous decision win against him at UFC 317, The Fearless finally got a title shot after two years in the promotion. 

Unfortunately for Van, his first title shot was not a fight to remember. Yes, he won, but only due to a fluke injury to Pantoja, who suffered an issue with his elbow, which rendered him unable to fight. Nonetheless, the bout made Van a champion, and he has been active one so far. After securing the title in December, he defended it once, in May of this year, when he successfully defeated Tatsuro Taira via KO/TKO. 

Joshua Van quickly started to reap the fruits of his rise to the top of the UFC flyweight division, and in addition to glory and fame, business opportunities started to rise up for him left and right. One of the biggest ones he landed was the one with online casino and sportsbet outlet Rainbet. The Rainbet UFC Betting section is deemed as one of the best in the business, and the reigning UFC flyweight division champion is an ideal face to be a brand ambassador. 

The Fearless is already doing the heavy lifting for the company and has done one of the best UFC betting promos we’ve seen. In Rainbet’s video, Van is seen working out in a gym, preparing for his next bout, saying: “Sometimes the odds are against you. Sometimes, the whole room is against you. And the only person left who’d bet on you is you. I always bet on myself, and now I bet on Rainbet.”

This promo is coming at an amazing moment in Van’s career, as he is about to take the main stage once again and defend his title against none other than Alexandre Pantoja. The rematch between these two lads has been in the making since December. The UFC was waiting for two things to happen. First, Pantoja had to recover from his elbow injury. Secondly, they wanted Van to defend his title at least once, to prove his championship clout. Both things have happened in the past few months, and Dana White and Co from UFC were quick to make this bout happen. 

UFC 331 is the stage where these two men will fight, and Van vs. Pantoja 2 is the main card for the evening. UFC 331 is scheduled for Crypto.com Arena In Los Angeles, California, on September 19, 2026. The main event is expected to be a close affair, with none of the fighters having a head start advantage, at least as far as the odds go. Van is a slight favourite with 1.82 odds, while Pantoja has his odds set at 1.93. During the press tour, both fighters have shown a desire to make this bout a spectacular one, and fans are more than eager to see them go all out in three weeks time. 

The rest of the card also shows a lot of promise as fights such as Tsarukyan vs. Ruffy, Tuivasa vs. Despaigne, and Stevenson vs. Sharaf were scheduled for UFC 331.