Tatsuro Taira reacts to Joshua Van’s UFC 323 title win over Alexandre Pantoja

Tatsuro Taira may now be in prime position to challenge for the UFC Flyweight Championship.

The new titleholder is Joshua Van, who defeated Alexandre Pantoja in 26 seconds at UFC 323. Pantoja suffered a bad shoulder injury and could not continue. Taira competed on that same night, scoring a second-round TKO finish over Brandon Moreno.

Taira showed respect for Van and sent a congratulatory message during the post-fight press conference (h/t MMAJunkie).

“Seeing Joshua Van through this fight week, I always felt he might do it,” Taira said. “I felt he might have something that might make something happen, so I wasn’t surprised in that sense. He’s the first Asian male champion, so why not celebrate? Congratulations.”

Many believe that Van vs. Taira is the fight to make at 125 pounds. UFC CEO Dana White admitted to reporters that such a title fight taking place in Japan sounds like a good idea, but that wasn’t a confirmation of actual plans. UFC hasn’t been to Japan since 2017. A title fight for Taira would give UFC plenty of reason to end that drought and time will tell if that ends up being the direction.

Taira wasn’t exactly stunned when referee Mark Smith stopped his UFC 323 bout against Moreno. Taira and Moreno shared the Octagon inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas this past Saturday. The bout was featured on the UFC 323 main card and the finish was controversial. Taira was in top control and rained down strikes before Smith stopped the bout.

UFC color commentators Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier criticized the stoppage, citing Moreno’s past wars and his ability to recover more often than not. Taira shared his belief that Moreno would’ve ultimately been finished if the fight had gone on longer.

“For me, when the second round started and even before the ground-and-pound, I even felt his power was definitely low, so I wasn’t surprised at all that he would be knocked out in that way,” Taira said.