RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 3 sourcesLAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 06: Alexandre Pantoja of Brazil (R) kicks Joshua Van of Myanmar during a flyweight title fight at T-Mobile Arena on December 06, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ian Maule/Getty Images) Getty
On September 19, the UFC is back at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, with an intriguing event. In the main event of UFC 331, champion Joshua Van puts his belt on the line in a rematch against former champion Alexandre Pantoja.
Also, a high-stakes matchup in the co-main event between Arman Tsarukyan and highly touted Mauricio Ruffy is set for a five-round fight. The winner is most likely to fight for the lightweight title next against current champion Justin Gaethje.
A New Opportunity
For Joshua Van, the fight against Alexandre Pantoja will be the second title defense of his flyweight title. The fighter from Myanmar won the title at the end of last year by beating Pantoja via TKO. Pantoja got injured early in the fight. The original plan was to do the rematch right away, but Pantoja needed more time to heal his injury. Because of that, Van took on Tatsuro Taira earlier this year for his first title defense. Van impressed and won via TKO in the fifth round to retain the gold. The expected rematch against Pantoja is now scheduled.
Pantoja became champion in 2023 after beating Brandon Moreno in one of the year’s best fights. The Brazilian went on to defend his belt four times with finishes over Kai Asakura and Kai Kara-France. Coming into his fifth title defense against the young Van, he was also a favorite. Unfortunately, he injured himself early on in the fight. Now he returns and wants revenge for that loss against the current champion. Pantoja was on an eight-fight winning streak before losing the title by the end of last year.
Big Stakes At Lightweight
Originally, the UFC planned to do a rematch between Arman Tsarukyan and Charles Oliveira. For personal reasons, Oliveira is not fighting. Mauricio Ruffy replaces his countryman. For years, Tsarukyan has been one of the best fighters in the division. He was supposed to fight for the title early last year but pulled out one day before the fight with a back injury. The UFC, especially President Dana White, wasn’t happy about the situation and didn’t want to talk about a new title fight opportunity for Tsarukyan for some time.
Tsarukyan was back up later that year for the title fight between Ilia Topuria and Charles Oliveira and only fought one more time against Dan Hooker in Qatar. Tsarukyan won via arm-triangle choke submission in the second round. Now he takes on Mauricio Ruffy. The Armenian fighter has to win to secure a new title shot at lightweight. He meets Ruffy in a five-rounder.
For Ruffy a massive opportunity again. The fan favorite came into the UFC in 2023 after winning on the Contender Series. Ruffy quickly became a must-watch TV after beating Jamie Mullarkey and King Green with one of the best knockouts in 2025. The raise in the division was stopped by Benoît Saint Denis, who was able to outgrapple the Brazilian and finish him by submission.
A big setback for the Brazilian, but he was able to bounce back in a big way. This year, he has fought twice in the UFC so far. He knocked out Rafael Fiziev in the second round and recently put the icing on the cake by stopping Michael Chandler during the White House event in the first round. With the solid finishes and the hype back behind his name, he now takes on arguably the best guy in the division, Tsarukyan. A win over the Armenian will get Ruffy a title shot.
UFC 331 – September 19 (Crypto.com Arena)
Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja
Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy
Renato Moicano vs. Brian Ortega
Marlon Vera vs. Charles Jourdain
Casey O’Neill vs. Eduarda Moura
Patricio Pitbull vs. DooHo Choi
Alonzo Menifield vs. Iwo Baraniewski
Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Brunno Ferreira
Gable Steveson vs. Sean Sharaf
Tai Tuivasa vs. Robelis Despaigne
Ryan Gandra vs. Ozzy Diaz
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