Joshua Van vs. Tatsuro Taira: Odds and what to know ahead of UFC 328

TL;DR

Joshua Van will defend his UFC flyweight title against Tatsuro Taira at UFC 328 in May. Van, the first Myanmar-born champion, has a record of 16-2, while Taira holds an 18-1 record and is ranked No. 5 in the flyweight division.

Key points

Joshua Van is the first Myanmar-born champion in UFC history.
Van will defend his flyweight title against Tatsuro Taira.
Taira is ranked No. 5 in the flyweight division.
Van's last fight ended in a TKO due to injury.
Taira is on a winning streak with two recent stoppages.

Joshua VanTatsuro TairaUFC 328

After being postponed from April, Joshua Van, the first Myanmar-born champion in UFC history, will attempt his first flyweight title defense when he meets Japanese star Tatsuro Taira at UFC 328 in May.

Joshua Van vs. Tatsuro Taira preview

Van (16-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) claimed the UFC's 125-pound title in unceremonious fashion when he beat Alexandre Pantoja by injury TKO just 26 seconds into their fight at UFC 323 in December. The win extended Van's winning streak to six after he was coming off a win over Brandon Royval in the 2025 Fight of the Year five months earlier at UFC 317.

Taira (18-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC), No. 5 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie flyweight rankings, will get his first UFC title shot on the strength of back-to-back wins. After losing to Royval by split decision in October 2024, Taira bounced back with a pair of second-round stoppages against Hyun Sung Park and most recently former champion Brandon Moreno, also at UFC 323.

Joshua Van vs. Tatsuro Taira odds

According to Betway, the sitting champion remains the underdog after the date shift, with Van listed +162 and Taira returning as the favorite at -200.