UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja isn’t showing any animosity toward Joshua Van ahead of UFC 323, but his energy at the pre-fight press conference told a different story. The champion stared straight through Van during their first faceoff, stone-cold and locked in as he sharpened his focus for his fifth title defense.
Van, on the other hand, leaned fully into his youthful confidence. He met the champ’s stare with a smile and even threw his hand up in early celebration, acting like a man ready to become one of the youngest champions in UFC history.
The rest of the card stayed calmer. Merab Dvalishvili and Petr Yan shared a quick, drama-free faceoff before turning to the crowd, with Merab tossing the bantamweight belt over his shoulder as he declared, “and still,” ahead of UFC 323’s final call.
Henry Cejudo also stepped in for one of the last faceoffs of his career. With retirement looming after his fight with Payton Talbott, “Triple C” took a moment to honor those who shaped his journey, including a special shoutout to UFC CEO Dana White, who wasn’t in attendance.
As fight night approaches, Alexandre Pantoja remains clear on what’s driving him. He wants more than a win, he wants greatness.
“I want to be the pound-for-pound No. 1, I want to be the best fighter in the world,” Pantoja said. “It’s very tough to conquer that because we have a lot of good champions right now.
“You have (Islam) Makhachev, Merab (Dvalishvili), (Ilia) Topuria, (Khamzat) Chimaev, (Alex) Pereira, (Alexander) Volkanovski, so many great guys. I think that’s the best time to be a UFC fan, but at the same time, it’s very hard for fighters to get the No. 1 position.”
Even as fans debate whether Pantoja truly gets the recognition he deserves, Joshua Van believes the champ’s flowers are already in bloom.
“Yeah, I think so because everybody says he might be the greatest flyweight,” Van told Newsweek Sports. “I think they do give him the flowers he deserves, ranked No. 5 pound-for-pound or something. That’s pretty high right there.”
If Pantoja wins on Saturday, it will mark his fifth straight UFC flyweight title defense, strengthening a run that already sits among the best in the division’s history. The champion has repeatedly made it clear that he doesn’t plan to move up in weight, unless a special opportunity makes it worth the leap.
Van burst into the title picture after his wild, fight-of-the-year win over Brandon Royval at UFC 317. At 24, he’s one of the most active and relentless fighters in the division, a perfect challenger for Pantoja’s dominant reign.
He doesn’t shy away from the magnitude of this moment either. In fact, he embraces it.
Van recently explained why he believes the man standing across from him at UFC 323 is the best ever to do it at 125 pounds and on December 6, he’ll get his chance to prove he belongs at the top of that conversation too.
