A few years ago, Joshua Van was just an emerging name in the UFC. But that status completely changed after he defeated Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 323 to become the flyweight champion. Though his win was marred by Pantoja’s injury, which resulted in the former champ being unable to continue, his newfound fame as a UFC champion has made MMA fans increasingly curious about him.

On May 9, the UFC world will witness the 24-year-old star back in action once again as he prepares to defend his title for the first time. Van was originally expected to make his return at UFC 327 last month, but a sudden injury pushed the bout back to UFC 328 against Tatsuro Taira. Ahead of his co-main event bout in Newark, New Jersey, let’s take a closer look at the young champion’s life, and where he comes from.

Where is Joshua Van from, and What is Joshua Van’s nationality? 

For those who don’t already know, Joshua Van was born in Myanmar. However, today he is a proud US citizen and fights out of Houston, Texas. There is a deeper story behind how he made his way to American soil.

‘The Fearless’ was born on October 10, 2001, in Hakha, in the Chin State of western Myanmar, into a family with five siblings. Due to ongoing military and political conflict in the country, his family moved to Malaysia when he was around ten years old. Years later, in 2013, Van immigrated with his family to the United States and settled in Houston for better opportunities. He was twelve at the time. 

With the clarity on Joshua van’s nationality, let’s take a look at what ethnicity he belongs to.

What is Joshua Van’s ethnicity? 

As you might have understood by now, Joshua Van is ethnically Asian, belonging to the Chin ethnic group, and he takes pride in his roots. Despite fighting out of the United States, the Burmese-American has represented Myanmar on the global stage.

Following his unanimous decision win over Cody Durden in their flyweight bout at T-Mobile Arena during UFC 310, Joshua Van made a request. Respecting it, the UFC permitted him to represent Myanmar, allowing him to carry the national flag of the country for the first time at UFC 313, where he defeated Rei Tsuruya via unanimous decision. 

After that, Van showed strong dedication to his home country and its people when he faced Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 327. Although the outcome came unexpectedly, as ‘The Cannibal’ suffered an elbow injury that resulted in a TKO stoppage, the victory stood under official rules. With that win, ‘The Fearless’ made history, becoming the UFC’s first Asian-born male champion—Zhang Weili being the first overall. 

Now, as we have come to know about Joshua Van’s ethnicity, let’s explore the religion he follows.

Is Joshua Van Christian? 

When it comes to faith, Joshua Van has remained open about being a Christian. Even before becoming a champion, he spoke about his beliefs during an appearance on the Jaxxon podcast, revealing his role as a preacher.

After creating history at UFC 323 by defeating long-standing champion Alexandre Pantoja, Van once again made his beliefs clear by dedicating the victory to Jesus.

“First of all, I want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” Van stated during his UFC 323 octagon interview. “Without Him, I would have never been here. I’m so blessed. Now the world will never forget Joshua Van. And the people of Myanmar, now the world will know of us.”

Interestingly, the Chin ethnic group, to which Joshua Van belongs, has a strong Christian presence, with around 85.5% of the population following the faith.  With that fact intact, this makes it less surprising that the flyweight champion also follows Christianity.

Now, with Joshua Van aiming for his first title defense at UFC 328, he will be looking to establish himself as a star on the global MMA landscape, and hopefully, he succeeds in doing that.