Joshua Van calls for Manel Kape fight next

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Joshua Van is already looking ahead to his next title defense.

Last time out, Van silenced all the doubters who believed he wasn’t the rightful flyweight champion. In December 2025, Van became the second-youngest fighter in UFC history to claim gold, but he did so with an anticlimactic ending when Alexandre Pantoja severely dislocated his elbow during a fall. The 24-year-old would go on to defend his title against Tatsuro Taira, but some fans still counted him out. There are no more doubts after his most recent performance, which saw him beat Pantoja convincingly over five rounds to remain the 125-pound king.

In the last two years, Joshua Van has fought a remarkable eight times. Keeping with the tradition of staying active, the Burmese native has set his sights on a tough contender who is riding a four-fight win streak. Unwilling to sit and wait for the next challenger to emerge, Van issued a challenge to Manel Kape on social media.

“Yo fat f***,” Van said. “Start cutting now cuz u better make weight! We don’t want another weight excuse. Let’s give the people what they want!”

Joshua Van is nursing a right shoulder injury that could keep him out for some time. Ahead of his rematch with Alexandre Pantoja, Van damaged his shoulder and was unable to spar until the latter stages of his fight camp.

As the dust settled on an impressive win at UFC 331, Van announced that he would get his arm looked at before making any immediate decision to return. He stated he would welcome any fighter that the UFC wants him to fight, but he has to make sure he’s healthy first.

However, fast forward to Wednesday, September 30. Van has sought out his next opponent, leading fans to believe his injury isn’t as bad as he first thought. Could we get a Joshua Van vs. Manel Kape announcement before the end of the year?