In the high-stakes world of UFC flyweight championship fighting, words can hit just as hard as punches. Fresh off his title defense at UFC 328, champion Joshua Van had a simple message for former champ Alexandre Pantoja: "Go get some milk, man."

The tension between these two flyweights has been brewing since their first meeting last December, when their title fight ended in just 30 seconds due to a gruesome arm injury. Pantoja's attempted kick was caught by Van, and as the challenger pushed back, the champion's arm bent the wrong way while trying to break his fall. It was a fight that ended before it truly began.

Fast forward to Saturday night in Newark, where Van (17-2 MMA, 10-1 UFC) proved his championship reign is no fluke. Entering as the underdog, he stopped Tatsuro Taira (18-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) via fifth-round TKO in the co-main event. The victory sets up what many expect to be an inevitable rematch with a fully recovered Pantoja.

But don't expect Van to get caught up in trash talk. At the post-fight press conference, he addressed the growing tension between the two fighters with characteristic brevity. While acknowledging that things have gotten testy—Pantoja has been vocal in interviews during his recovery—Van insists there's no bad blood on his end. "I saw him yesterday. There's no hate from me. I talked to him. I shook his hand," Van explained.

The champion even revealed that he approached Pantoja immediately after the injury, offering a sincere apology. "I walked up to him because when I was celebrating, I didn't know his arm was like that. After I saw his arm on the screen, I walked up to him. I said, 'Sorry.'"

Though the rivalry hasn't reached the intensity of a Khamzat Chimaev vs. Sean Strickland feud, there's clearly some friction brewing. Van isn't losing sleep over it, though. He wishes Pantoja well in his recovery and looks forward to settling things in the cage—where champions are made and legacies are built.