Pantoja’s UFC 310 Win and Joshua Van’s Title Run
Alexandre Pantoja submitted Kai Asakura by rear-naked choke at 2:05 of Round 2 at UFC 310, retaining the flyweight championship. Joshua Van later won the title from Pantoja and defended it in their UFC 331 rematch.
How Pantoja finished the title fight
Asakura arrived from Rizin for his UFC debut and immediately challenged for the flyweight title. Pantoja brought the fight to the mat in the second round, worked to Asakura’s back and secured the rear-naked choke. The official result was a submission at 2:05 of Round 2. That result settled the matchup discussed in this 2024 preview.
Pantoja’s title reign after UFC 310
Pantoja later defended the belt against Kai Kara-France. His title reign ended at UFC 323 in December 2025 when Joshua Van was awarded a first-round TKO win at 0:26 after Pantoja injured his arm and could not continue. Van and Pantoja met again at UFC 331 on September 19, 2026; Van retained the title by unanimous decision, with official scores of 49–46, 48–47 and 50–45.
Sources: UFC 310 official result; Pantoja’s title defenses and Van rematch; UFC 323 result; UFC 331 scorecards.
