Athletes
Joshua Van: Born Ready
22-Year-Old Has Huge Aspirations In The UFC Flyweight Division
When you’re under the age of 25, some things don’t rattle you the way they would other people. So when the then-21-year-old Joshua Van got the short notice call to face Zhalgas Zhumagulov in June, he didn’t blink an eye when it came to accepting the fight or showing up to Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville.
Then he got to the locker room.
“I did get nervous when I was heading into the locker room,” he laughs. “I ain't never seen that much of a crowd when I fight. So I was looking at it and I was like, ‘Damn, that's a lot of people.’”
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Enter Van’s coach, longtime UFC vet Daniel Pineda, who had some soothing words of advice for his charge.
“Hey man, this what you asked for, so let’s warm up,” said Pineda, as no nonsense as ever.
Once the pair warmed up, all the nerves went away.
“When I was heading into the cage when I was about to fight, it felt like home,” said Van. “I loved it. I love the crowd and stuff like that, so yeah, it changed everything completely.”
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way to a split decision victory over Zhumagulov. He was a UFC fighter, he won his debut, and now it’s on to bigger and better things, like a Saturday date with Kevin Borjas in “the world’s most famous arena,” Madison Square Garden. But again, Van isn’t feeling the pressure of such an occasion.
“To be honest, for me, a fight is a fight,” he said. “All my friends, my teammates, they're like, ‘Damn, this is a big deal.’ I know Madison Square Garden is big, but a fight is a fight.”
If Van has learned anything from Pineda, it’s just that. All the pomp and circumstance don’t mean anything when the Octagon door shuts. Then, it is just a fight. And whittling everything down to its bare essence has helped Van win eight of his nine fights since turning pro in 2021.
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“He is a tough coach,” Van admits. “He trains with us, so sometimes when you’re acting like you don't want to train, he knows what's going on. So while we kind of don't like him, we love him because he pushed us to our limit every day.”
That tough love pays off on fight night, and despite his youth, the recently minted 22-year-old knows it. It’s a lot to take in, especially since he’s only been training for this since he was 19. To make it to the UFC in that amount of time is pretty incredible for anyone, including a young man who grew up in Myanmar with the intention of becoming either a soccer player or preacher.
But once he arrived in the United States at the age of 12, he had to learn to fight to defend himself. And soon, he learned that he liked it and that he was good at it.
“I was a small kid, and I didn't know how to speak English, so I had a hard time,” said Van, who now makes his home in Houston. “I was defending myself and I was fighting almost every day, to the point where I enjoyed fighting. And one day, I just decided why don't I fight for my country, my people, and show them we can actually turn our life around and use this fighting stuff as a positive by motivating people.”
He’s done that, with folks around the gym and the area letting him know that he’s doing a positive thing that people are paying attention to. So he’s motivating those around him. But how is he motivating himself? I knew it was a loaded question, but I asked anyway. In a wide-open flyweight division, a few wins can go a long way in terms of moving up the ladder. At 22, does he think about breaking Jon Jones’ record as the youngest champion in UFC history, a goal that’s approximately one year and seven months away?
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“I do,” he said without hesitation. “I talked to my manager (Jason House), and I was like, ‘You gotta keep me busy. I want to break that record.”
Are you ready for all that?
“I was born ready.”
UFC 295: Procházka vs Pereira took place live from Madison Square Garden in New York City on November 11, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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