Joshua Van, representing Myanmar, secured one of the most impressive recent UFC victories by defeating the experienced Brazilian Alexandre Pantoja in a championship rematch—following a previous bout where Pantoja had suffered an elbow injury just 26 seconds into the first round.
Early on, Van dominated Pantoja at times, and the two engaged in exchanges of kicks; Van managed to control portions of the five-round fight, ultimately winning by unanimous decision with scores of 49-46, 48-47, and 50-45.
An accidental headbutt opened a cut on Pantoja in the second round, forcing him to fight on while bloodied for the remainder of the bout.
Pantoja constantly sought to overcome Van in what was a great fight, but Van delivered a superior performance—even scoring a knockdown in the fifth round—in a contest that stood out as the “Fight of the Night.”
The 24-year-old Van is the first champion from Myanmar in UFC history, while Pantoja holds the records for wins, finishes, and submissions in the flyweight division.
The gritty 33-year-old American fighter Sean Sharaf secured a spectacular knockout victory over his compatriot and former Olympic medalist Gable Steveson, 26, just 12 seconds into the first round of a super-lightweight bout at UFC 331, held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
Sharaf, a UFC veteran, pulled off one of the biggest upsets in UFC history with one of the fastest knockouts ever, as a devastating left hook sent Steveson to the canvas and ended his undefeated record.
American Alonzo Menifield handed Poland’s Iwo Baraniewski, 27, his first loss via a split decision in a light heavyweight bout; the judges scored it 29-28 for Baraniewski and 29-28, 29-28 for Menifield.
It was a highly intense and emotional fight; despite suffering a deep cut on his hand, Menifield demonstrated great resilience to claim the victory.
Other Results:
Arman Tsarukyan defeated Mauricio Ruffy by KO (elbows) at 4:56 of Round one.
Patricio Pitbull defeated Doo Ho Choi by knockout at 3:28 of the first round.
Marlon Vera defeated Charles Jourdain by technical knockout at 2:02 of the third round.
Robelis Despaigne won a split decision over Tai Tuivasa, with scores of 29-28 and 29-28 in his favor, and 29-28 for Tuivasa.
Michael Aswell defeated JooSang Yoo by split decision, with scores of 29-28 and 29-28 for Aswell and 29-28 for Yoo.
Ryan Gandra defeated Ozzy Diaz by knockout at 2:04 of the first round.
Edmen Shahbazyan won by unanimous decision (29-28). 29-28 and 30-27 over Brunno Ferreira
Casey O’Neill defeated Eduarda Moura via submission at 3:33 of the first round
Joanderson Brito defeated Giga Chikadze via knockout at 1:57 of the first round
