UFC 328 video: Joshua Van dazzles with late knockout to finish Tatsuro Taira after back-and-forth war

Van cracked Taira several times and it appeared he was hurting the top ranked contender but then out of nowhere the Japanese flyweight exploded forward with another takedown. Taira could do much on the ground and when the fighters got up again, Van connected with a brutal right hand that immediately scored a knockdown.

It looked like Van might get the finish but Taira was able to grab onto the flyweight champion until time expired to allow him one-minute to recover.

On the restart, Van was just popping Taira with a lead jab and he blocked a takedown attempt with a huge knee up the middle that landed with thudding force. Van scored another takedown with a jab directly to the chin and it appeared Taira was all but finished.

Van nearly locked up a rear-naked choke but instead returned to the feet with Taira’s face covered in blood from the damage done. Somehow Taira survived and scored a late takedown as the fight moved into the championship rounds.

In round four, Taira opened with a nasty calf kick that immediately affected Van before landing yet another takedown. Taira got to mount again and he was maintaining control while also slamming the champion with some shoulder shrugs on the canvas.

Van finally exploded and nearly got caught in a triangle choke but he escaped and returned to the feet.

With five minutes remaining, Van opened with that same damaging jab that pieced up Taira all night long. Taira kept trying for takedowns but he wasn’t able to grab onto Van, who was firing back with a furious combination of strikes.

That’s when Van connected with another barrage of shots including several to the body and a brutal right hand that put Taira down on the canvas and the referee stepped in to stop it.  Van showed resilience and a skill set that proved he deserves to sit atop the flyweight rankings but he also knows he has some unfinished business with Alexandre Pantoja after a freak injury ended their first fight this past December.

“Pantoja, you better get your shit right,” Van shouted after his win. “We can run it back if you want.”