Joshua Van admits Joe Rogans criticism before UFC 331 got to him: It was kind of f

Joshua Van is the new gold standard at 125 pounds.

After his divisive title victory over Alexandre Pantoja last December, Van left no doubt at UFC 331 this past Saturday. The reigning UFC flyweight champion wiped away the sour taste from his 26-second injury win by scoring a unanimous decision over Pantoja in their thrilling rematch in Los Angeles.

Speaking Tuesday on "The Ariel Helwani Show," Van’s performance became even more impressive, as he revealed a torn AC joint he suffered pre-fight in his right shoulder.

"I couldn't even train boxing. I couldn't train wrestling. I couldn't do nothing," Van told Uncrowned. "All I did was run.

“For three weeks I couldn't really do anything. I couldn't spar, I couldn't do nothing."

Van's injury occurred as soon as he started training camp, he said.

The champion returned home to Houston after UFC 331’s pre-fight press conference in Philadelphia in August. In a wrestling session, Van fell on his shoulder and said he knew immediately that something was wrong. From there, he worked with UFC doctors to get through the training camp and recover as much as he could before fight night.

Ultimately, Van, 24, doesn't believe he'll need surgery and never considered pulling out, especially considering how the first Pantoja fight ended. Come fight day, Van wasn't worried about the injury and noted it only hurts with certain backward-stretching movements.

"Pantoja was already saying I was scared to fight him. If I pull out and I'm the main event — I got that [chip] on my shoulder, 'I can't pull this out,'" Van said.

"The last sparring session [of camp] was a lot better than the first one. [If I'm 100% healthy,] it's going to be a lot different than the fight that we just had.

“[I finish him] for sure."

Van vs. Pantoja 1 left plenty of questions after Pantoja suffered his gruesome elbow injury. Even after Van successfully defended the title in May with a dramatic fifth-round knockout of Tatsuro Taira, an asterisk still hung over his championship status.

Esther Lin

Van admitted he was bothered to hear UFC commentator Joe Rogan still highlight the questionable nature of his status at UFC 331’s weigh-ins, calling the first win "an accident."

"I ain't even gonna lie, man. It was kind of f***ed up he said that, but much love to Joe Rogan. He's a legend," Van said.

"I don't really give a f*** what other people say, but Joe Rogan is somebody that I looked up to. For him to say that, it's kinda like, ‘Damn.’ He doesn't have to [apologize]. I just let him know how I feel."

Now, Van is fully capable of not only putting Rogan's comments behind him, but the Pantoja saga as well.

The likely next challenger for the young champion’s belt appears to be top-ranked contender Manel Kape, who has been on an destructive four-fight win streak since his July 2024 unanimous decision loss to Muhammad Mokaev.

Kape wasted little time poking at the champion following UFC 331, posting on social media: "You're all going to be surprised by how easy I make this fight look."

Van fully expects the former RIZIN bantamweight champion to be his next opponent.

"He's good. ... That's what they all say. Come fight day, we're going to see who's the better man. He should be next, for sure. He's aight. He brings the eyes. Perfect," Van said.

"I've gotta be in the cage with him for me to find out [if he's better than Pantoja]. Sometimes what you see on TV and what you feel in the Octagon is different. Pantoja, on TV, he sucked, you know what I mean? But in the Octagon, when he throws and he lands, I'm like, 'Damn, how the f*** does that land on me?' Anybody that knows striking knows that's not how you punch. But it worked for him because that's his style. Pantoja is great, but he's not a technical, skilled fighter. He's just mentally strong and pressures guys."

Van said he stil has to wait for further shoulder testing to know what his timetable for a return looks like, but he's competed at a rapid frequency since his UFC arrival in June 2023. If he can fight again in 2026, he’ll surely take the opportunity if the stars align.

Compared to Pantoja, who secured four successful defenses in his reign, Van has much more time to make a serious dent in flyweight history. All champions within the division continue to chase the bar set by flyweight’s inaugural beltholder, UFC Hall of Famer Demetrious Johnson, who defended his title a UFC record 11 consecutive times.

That record isn't necessarily one of Van’s specific goals, but if things continue going his way, he fully plans to etch his name deeper into the UFC’s history books.

"I'm trying to write history at flyweight. Nobody gave a s*** about flyweight. Now they start to care about the flyweights. So, I can't leave them hanging,” he said.

"I don't give a f*** about [surpassing Johnson's title defense record]. I'm just going to fight until I don't enjoy it. As far as I know, my job is to make people care about this flyweight division, and I think not just me but the flyweight division is doing pretty damn good about that. So, I'm very proud to be a flyweight."