Joshua
Van studies footage of fellow fighters who have a style similar
to his.
Van recently revealed that he used to flip tape of Dustin
Poirier to pick up techniques. He explains that he used to flip
the footage because he is orthodox while Poirier is a southpaw. Van
studies tape of other elite fighters like Ilia
Topuria, who have a boxing-based style like him. However, Van’s
favorite fighter to study is fellow
Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder Petr Yan.
Joshua Van explains how Dustin Poirier, Petr Yan and Ilia
Topuria influence his striking
Van defended his title for the second time at UFC
331, putting his renowned boxing on display to defeat Alexandre
Pantoja in their rematch. “The Fearless” revealed in a recent
interview that he actively studies Yan’s hands and incorporates
what he can into his own arsenal.
“He’s got my style of fighting,” Van told Ariel Helwani. “He’s a
boxing-based fighter, kind of like Petr Yan, Ilia. I like to study
one of the greats and just put it into my game… Petr Yan really is
the one that I really watch.”
Van has emerged as a fan favorite for his fighting style. His next
challenger hasn’t been revealed yet, with Manel Kape
being the frontrunner. Meanwhile, Yan is scheduled to defend his
title in a trilogy bout against Merab Dvalishvili at
UFC 333.
Joshua Van
explains why he used to flip footage of Dustin
Poirier to study his striking:“He’s got my style of fighting. He’s a boxing-based fighter, kind
of like Petr Yan,
Ilia.I like to study one of the greats and just put it into my game.
Petr
Yan really is the one that I… pic.twitter.com/i3D5dST7M5— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani)
September 22, 2026