Van retained his title with a unanimous decision over former
champion Alexandre
Pantoja in the UFC 331 main event at Crypto.com Arena in Los
Angeles. The judges scored the bout 49-46, 49-47 and 50-45 for Van,
who had nothing but respect for his Brazilian counterpart after
their clash.

Joshua Van defeats Alexandre Pantoja by unanimous decision at
UFC 331

Their first fight ended in anticlimactic fashion last year, with
Van winning the title after an arm injury to Pantoja forced a
referee stoppage early in the first round. The former then defended
his title against Tatsuro
Taira, but questions remained over whether he's still the best
125-pounder while Pantoja recovered from his injury.

Van silenced the doubters with his performance at UFC 331, landing
significant damage while escaping most grappling entanglements. He
even attempted a submission of his own, but the former champ
managed to get out of it.

“A lot of people say that was an accident win the first time,†Van
said in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan. “Now, doubt me
now. Shout out to Pantoja. Nothing but respect for me. He’s a tough
man. He’s hard to finish. I did my submission, but I don’t know how
the hell he got out of that. I usually, with that move, I get
everybody in the gym, but I don’t know how the hell he got out of
that.â€

The duo won Fight of the Night honors for their five-round war.

Zuffa LLC

Gable Steveson had already been under the microscope prior to his UFC 331 fight against Sean Sharaf, but Dana White isn't scolding him for how he handled a shocking 12-second knockout loss.

Steveson entered the UFC as a decorated freestyle wrestling, having won Olympic gold. While his accolades were never called into question, a past involving sexual assault accusations have stuck with Steveson. Sharaf brought up the allegations during fight week, and many criticized Steveson for how he reacted to his opponent's comments.

Ultimately, Sharaf pulled off a massive upset by knocking Steveson out cold in just 12 seconds.

Rather than stay inside the Octagon as the final result was announced by Bruce Buffer, Steveson and his team made a quick exit. This drew scrutiny from the likes of UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier, who was on the call during the fight. Speaking to reporters following UFC 331, White didn't exactly share that same fire (via MMAJunkie).

“Obviously, he had huge expectations on himself,†White said. “It happens. Forrest Griffin f*cking ran out of the octagon when he won the fight. These things happen.â€

As far as the upset alone is concerned, the UFC boss thinks it's another example of why no one can be counted out inside the Octagon.

“Anything is possible, man,†White said. “Anything is possible when two guys get in there and start fighting. You never know how fights are (going to go). That's why when people always ask me, ‘Oh, what do you think? Is this guy going to fight this guy after Saturday?' Let's see what happens on Saturday. I don't know. I don't know what the fight is going to look like. It's like when people say, ‘Oh, this card sucks.' The f*cking card hasn't happened yet. What do you mean it sucks? If it sucks, I'll be the first one to say it sucks.â€

How Steveson will respond to the shocker in his next outing will be a story to watch, but Sharaf is enjoying his moment in the spotlight.

What's your take on Gable Steveson failing to stick around to face the music following his UFC 331 loss? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

UFC

Former UFC star Jon Jones' reaction to Gable Steveson's defeat at UFC 331 was caught on camera last night.

Last night at UFC 331, Gable Steveson's world came crashing down. He was knocked out cold by Sean Sharaf in a matter of seconds, which came at the end of a heated week in which Sharaf really went after Steveson in the build-up to the fight.

RELATED: Gable Steveson believes Jon Jones could return to the UFC heavyweight division

Gable Steveson simply couldn't deal with the pressure being put on him in the early stages of the bout and as a result of that, he now has to go back to the drawing board and see what exactly went wrong as he tries to bounce back into heavyweight contention.

In a video released shortly after the knockout, Gable Steveson's mentor Jon Jones has been seen reacting to what went down in California.

Jon Jones live reaction to Gable Steveson being knocked out at UFC 331 😢 pic.twitter.com/wDc3bfKPCO

— bjpenndotcom (@bjpenndotcom) September 20, 2026

Jones' reaction to Gable Steveson defeat

As you can imagine, Jon Jones wasn't happy with what he saw at UFC 331. In fact, he was pretty shocked, and that makes sense given the amount of hype that has been surrounding Steveson ever since he entered the UFC. it was a brutal moment for his entire team, and it will be interesting to see how he's able to bounce back from it.

For Jones himself, there are already questions about whether or not he will come back to try and ‘save the day' for the UFC's heavyweight division. He has certainly been inconsistent with his messaging to the fans and the promotion, but given where things are at right now, he may provide the exact kind of star power they so desperately need up there.

What do you believe the future holds for Steveson? Can he still go on to become a world champion in the UFC? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, BJPENN Nation!

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM