UFC 331 fight card: Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja 2 set to headline in Los Angeles

The flyweight title rematch is set for a major headlining role, plus Arman Tsarukyan is set for his return Aug 5, 2026 at 7:53 pm ET • 1 min read Getty Images The main and co-main event for the MMA leader's return to Los Angeles are officially set for Sept. 19. UFC 331 will see a flyweight title fight in the main event from the Crypto.com Arena.Flyweight champion Joshua Van will face former titleholder Alexandre Pantoja in a rematch headlining the card, UFC announced on Wednesday via social media. In the co-main event, No. 2-ranked lightweight Arman Tsarukyan squares off against No. 7 Mauricio Ruffy in a five-round non-title bout. The 24-year-old Van (17-2) captured the 125-pound title last December against Pantoja (30-5) at UFC 323 by first-round TKO after the 36-year-old Brazilian legend suffered an arm injury just 26 seconds into the bout. Van, a native of Myanmar, went on to defend the title in May by stopping Tatsuro Taira via fifth-round TKO in a fight of the year candidate. Tsarukyan (23-3), the 29-year-old Armenian from Georgia, returns to Los Angeles for the first time since he pulled out of a rematch against Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title in January 2025 at UFC 311 one day before the event due to a back injury sustained while cutting weight. He takes on the 30-year-old Ruffy (14-2), an exciting native of Brazil, who is 5-1 in the UFC since his 2024 debut. UFC 331 also includes the return of heavyweight prospect and 2020 U.S. Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson against Sean Sharaf, a Renato Moicano-Brian Ortega rematch at lightweight and an all-action featherweight bout featuring Patricio "Pitbull" Cruz and Dooho Choi. Check out the full card announced for Los Angeles below.UFC 331 fight cardJoshua Van (c) vs. Alexandre Pantoja, flyweight titleArman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy, five-round lightweight fightPatricio Pitbull vs. Dooho Choi, featherweightsRenato Moicano vs. Brian Ortega, lightweightsAlonzo Menifield vs. Iwo Baraniewski, light heavyweightsGable Steveson vs. Sean Sharaf, heavyweightsMarlon Vera vs. Charles Jourdain, bantamweightsTai Tuivasa vs. Robelis Despaigne, heavyweightsEdmen Shahbazyan vs. Brunno Ferreira, middleweightsGiga Chikadze vs. Joanderson Brito, featherweightsCasey O'Neill vs. Eduarda Moura, women's flyweightsRyan Gandra vs. Ozzy Diaz, middleweightsMichael Aswell Jr. vs. Joosang Yoo, featherweights