‘Mom Was Waiting All Night’: Joshua Van Opens Up About Being Arrested on His 17th Birthday

The Myanmar-born Houston prospect is the flyweight champion of the UFC and is the first fighter born in Myanmar to sign with the promotion. 

He is also the second-youngest champion in UFC history at 24 and the first Houston fighter to hold a UFC title. However, all of this was not inevitable; there is a version of Van’s story that ended differently outside a Harris County jail. 

Joshua Van Talks About His Arrest

In an interview with Megan Olivi on the UFC’s Becoming a Fighter show, Joshua Van revealed how his mother didn’t want him to learn MMA. 

"My mom didn't let me train because she thought if I learn how to fight, I'm gonna be fighting a lot more on the street. So she said no training. And she wanted me to go back to school. I told her, if I go back to school, I'm gonna get in trouble, I'm gonna get locked up. And I did get locked up," he said. 

And the UFC star was arrested on his 17th birthday. It was for assault. If you are 17 years old, the legal system in Texas treats you like an adult. He was meant to celebrate his birthday with his family but instead spent the night in jail. And his mother, waiting outside, shattered something inside him.

"My mom was waiting all night outside of the Erie County Jail. She was standing outside with my pastor, my church pastor. Knowing that, it's just like, damn, my mom. She went through that whenever I'm in trouble. She bailed me out. And after that, I was just like, school ain't doing nothing for me. So I quit. I drop out," Van said.

“Getting arrested as a young kid you thought it was cool you know, I’m a bad kid this and that, but what changed my mind was my Mom was waiting all night outside of county jail,” Van added. At that age, Van stated that being behind bars seemed like an achievement since he was a bad kid. However, his mother's suffering caused him to change, and the rest is history. 

Van’s Next Challenge

The Myanmar-born fighter defeated champion Alexandre Pantoja via TKO for the flyweight title at UFC 323 in December 2025. The fight ended within the first minute of the bout as the latter was injured. 

It was Van’s tenth UFC bout, and he had only one loss on his UFC resume. In his first defense, Van beat Tatsuro Taira in a five-round battle at UFC 328 in May 2026.

Now he is scheduled for the Pantoja rematch. It was the headline UFC 331 in Los Angeles on 19 September. Van is already regarded as one of the best in his division, but a fair victory over Pantoja will push him into the all-time great debate.