Alexandre Pantoja says he is fully recovered from the arm injury he suffered in December at UFC 323, when he lost his flyweight title to Joshua Van in the opening seconds of their bout. Pantoja has been training since shortly after the injury and is now ready to compete again. With Van having since added a title defense over Tatsuro Taira, Pantoja is focused on winning back the belt and says he has "unfinished business" with the champion.
Alexandre Pantoja says he is healthy and ready to return to competition, with one goal in mind: reclaiming the UFC flyweight title from Joshua Van.
Pantoja, 36, revealed he has been back in training since shortly after suffering an arm injury at UFC 323 this past December — an injury that cut his title defense short in the opening seconds of his bout against Van. The Brazilian, who trains out of American Top Team, carries a 30-6 record and holds the number-one contender ranking at flyweight, as well as a top-five spot on the pound-for-pound list. Over his career he has averaged 4.36 significant strikes landed per minute and 2.8 takedowns per 15 minutes, with a submission attempt rate of one per 15 minutes — a reflection of the well-rounded pressure game that made him a long-reigning champion. He has stated he has "unfinished business" with the man who dethroned him.
That man is Joshua Van, the 24-year-old from Myanmar who now stands as the UFC flyweight champion with a 17-2 record. Van trains out of 4oz. Fight Club and has already added a title defense to his ledger, stopping number-five-ranked Tatsuro Taira. Standing five-foot-five with a 65-inch reach, Van fights out of an orthodox stance and has posted a remarkable striking output of 8.84 significant strikes landed per minute at 56 percent accuracy, suggesting an aggressive, high-volume style.
Why it matters
- Pantoja's recovery sets up what would be an immediate rematch for the flyweight title, a bout the former champion believes was left unsettled by the circumstances of their first meeting.
- Van's defense over Taira — a dangerous 18-2 grappler averaging over three takedowns and 1.6 submission attempts per 15 minutes — demonstrated the champion can handle elite-level threats, raising the stakes of any rematch.
- A Pantoja-Van II would pit the division's top-ranked contender against a young champion still establishing his reign, with significant pound-for-pound implications for both men.
