Two days after winning the UFC’s flyweight championship in December, Joshua Van stood at his father’s grave in Houston, his first visit since December 2022, according to ESPN. Van told ESPN that he normally waits in the car when he goes to the cemetery with his mother and only goes in after accomplishing something big.
Van’s relationship with his father was shaped by long absences during his childhood as his father searched for ways to move the family out of Myanmar, the report says. Van said he was separated from his father and two sisters at age 9 while waiting to join them at a refugee camp in Malaysia, and the family finally migrated to Houston when he was 12.
The transition to life in the United States was difficult, the report says. Van struggled with English, was teased and frequently fought, prompting his parents to move the family multiple times. After a period living with relatives in Iowa, an aunt urged him to channel his fighting into representing his country and family rather than fighting in the streets, and Van eventually returned to Houston and found an MMA gym.
Van’s father died when Van was 16 and was not alive to see his son begin an amateur career at 19; fewer than three years later Van earned a UFC contract, per the report. Van (16-2) has compiled a 9-1 UFC record in less than three years and became the second-youngest champion in UFC history, according to ESPN.
The report also chronicles Van’s effort to represent Myanmar in the Octagon. UFC officials initially denied his requests to walk out with the Myanmar flag, a restriction that frustrated Van and his camp, coach Daniel Pineda said. In 2025 Van carried the Myanmar flag during the walkout for all four of his UFC fights, and he now looks to defend his 125-pound title against Tatsuro Taira at UFC 328 on Saturday in Newark, New Jersey, per the report.
