UFC 2026 Half-Year Awards: Van-Taira Tops Fight Rankings

Joshua Van's flyweight title defense against Tatsuro Taira at UFC 328 claimed top honors in the UFC.com staff voting for best fights of the first half of 2026, marking Van's third consecutive first-place finish in the midyear category.

The 24-year-old champion weathered nine minutes of wrestling dominance from Taira before reversing course in the striking exchanges, according to the UFC.com awards report published this week. Taira kept hunting takedowns through rounds three and four, but Van stuffed the challenger's early attempts in the fifth and stopped him before the bell. Both flyweights are expected to remain fixtures in the title picture given their ages — Van is 24, Taira 26.

Gaethje Claims Two Spots in Top Five

Justin Gaethje landed twice in the rankings, placing second for his lightweight title win over Ilia Topuria at the White House event last month and fourth for his interim title fight against Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324. The Topuria bout saw Gaethje absorb heavy body work and submission attempts in round two before staging a brutal comeback, battering the champion through rounds three and four until the corner waved off the fight. "Topuria's team said, 'No más' and Gaethje kicked into celebration mode," the report noted.

Josh Hokit's heavyweight clash with Curtis Blaydes grabbed third place after the Contender Series graduate dropped the veteran with an early right hand and controlled the pace despite losing the first round on all cards. The former practice squad player has since moved to 4-0 in the UFC with a June win over Derrick Lewis at UFC Freedom 250.

Mason Jones versus Axel Sola at UFC London in March rounded out the top five, capping a half-year stretch that produced a clear consensus among voters and minimal overlap outside the five selections.

Source: ufc.com