UFC Jacksonville: Who is Joshua Van?
UFC puts on it's final event for the first half of the year this Saturday. This is an excellent fight card with motivated fighters, such as Maycee Barber, looking to put on impressive and rewarding performances. One such fighter is a stellar flyweight fighter who steps into the octagon for the first time.
Joshua Thawng, better known as Joshua Van, hails from Myanmar but fights out of Texas. Though all eyes will be on the featherweight main event between Josh Emmett and Ilia Topuria, Van looks to draw attention to the prelims with his promotional debut performance. Though it will be his first time making the walk to the UFC octagon, Van is more than familiar with the world of mixed martial arts.
Van has been a mainstay at Fury FC, having made his amateur debut at Fury FC 43 back in December 2020. He followed that up with three more successful bouts within the promotion before graduating to the professional level.
In October 2021, he made his professional debut at Fury FC 52 and has remained consistent ever since then. With a combination of submission finishes, captivating knockouts, as well as proving he can get it done on the judges' scorecards as well, Van has quickly gained valuable experience with eight pro fights to his name, with only one loss on his record.
Van's fight nickname is 'Fearless' and this is seen with the way he carries himself. Van was determined to achieve champion status and, with any given fight, he would put on a show for fight fans.
In his most recent fight at Fury FC 72, Van achieved his goal and claimed Fury FC's 125-pound gold as his own. He did this with a highly-impressive Standing Rear Naked Choke late into the second round, undeniably the best flyweight that Fury FC had.
Joshua Van has undeniable momentum
The one thing that Joshua Van has heading into this match is momentum. His last five fights at Fury FC saw him string together exciting wins, not even allowing the judges to decide his fate.
His 2022 year ended with him at the top of Fury FC's flyweight division and now, with this fight, he embarks on a new journey looking to do the same amongst the best that the world has to offer.
Van's first task in the UFC will be Zhalgas Zhumagulov. Zhako has been with the UFC since July 2020 and his run with the promotion has not yielded the desired results. No doubt that Zhumagulov will be looking to change that in a major way against this debutant.
The UFC's flyweight division is an incredibly exciting one that 'Fearless' could fit right into. The best way to do that would be to impress fight fans and matchmakers, which is something that Van has proven to be able to do time and time again. With all the confidence and undeniable momentum that Van has, he is certainly the debutant to tune in to see this Saturday at UFC Jacksonville.
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UFC Jacksonville: Josh Emmett vs. Ilia Topuria takes place on Saturday, June 24, 2023, live from VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Las Vegas, NV. Follow along with FanSided MMA for all your news and highlights.