Drake Cashes Seven-Figure Payout After Joshua Van Beats Alexandre Pantoja

Drake earned a seven-figure return on Saturday after Joshua Van provided the outcome the rapper anticipated in UFC 331’s rematch.

The Toronto native placed a $650,000 wager on Van prior to his title defense against champion Alexandre Pantoja in Los Angeles.

“I don’t know bro … but he better win,” Drake remarked while sharing the betting slip, which indicated a potential payout of $1.098 million.

Van secured victory by unanimous decision, converting Drake’s $650,000 stake into a total return of $1.098 million and approximately $448,000 in profit.

This win is part of Drake’s varied betting history over the years.

According to the official results from UFC, Pantoja started the match aggressively, achieving takedowns before Van found his boxing rhythm.

Pantoja controlled parts of the fourth round, but Van gained momentum late in the fight by pursuing him, landing combinations, and scoring a knockdown in the fifth round.

The judges scored the fight 49-46, 48-47, and 50-45 in favor of Van, marking his second consecutive successful title defense.

“A lot of people say that was an accident win the first time,” Van commented afterward. “Now, doubt me now. Shout out to Pantoja. Nothing but respect for me. He’s a tough man. He’s hard to finish. I did my submission, but I don’t know how the hell he got out of that.”

Van also discussed how challenging Pantoja was to discourage after sustaining clean punches throughout their five-round championship match.

“I knew I hurt him,” Van noted. “He is a mental giant, you know. He just doesn’t want to fall and he doesn’t want to show that he’s hurt, but I know deep down he was hurt. But, like I said, man, that’s why I respect him so much.”

Van again praised Pantoja afterward while reflecting on the significance of facing the former champion for five rounds.

“Like I said, man, Pantoja is a great fighter. He is, one of the greatest of all time in my eyes, so you know, fighting him for five rounds like that is just, you know what I mean? I’m grateful for that.”

This rematch was significant because Van initially captured the belt in December when Pantoja dislocated his elbow just 26 seconds into their first encounter.

With this victory at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on September 19, Van improved his professional record to 18-2.