Brandon Royval Archives - Cageside Press Cageside Press - Everything MMA! Mon, 15 Dec 2025 19:33:51 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.5 https://cagesidepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/cropped-cagesidepress512-3-32x32.png Brandon Royval Archives - Cageside Press 32 32 What’s Next: UFC Vegas 112 Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/15/whats-next-ufc-vegas-112-losers/ Mon, 15 Dec 2025 19:33:51 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218745 UFC Vegas 112 was the final UFC card of the 2025 calendar year. Additionally, the APEX card also marked the end of the UFC era on ESPN. The main event featured top ranked flyweight, Manel Kape, dropping and finishing Brandon Royval in the first round. In the co-main event, Kevin Vallejos logged a standout performance […]

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]]> UFC Vegas 112 was the final UFC card of the 2025 calendar year. Additionally, the APEX card also marked the end of the UFC era on ESPN.

The main event featured top ranked flyweight, Manel Kape, dropping and finishing Brandon Royval in the first round. In the co-main event, Kevin Vallejos logged a standout performance and finish against longtime ranked featherweight, Giga Chikadze.  A six-fight main card as well as one fight that ended in a draw means the edition will be heavily loaded with a total of seven fighters.

Brandon Royval

Manel Kape took a little over half a round to trap Royval against the cage, drop him with a hook and finish the job. This was a matchup that had been made twice before this year, with both fighters causing a cancellation a piece, injuries being the culprits for both men. Royval entered the fight ranked at #2 in the division while Kape was at #8. This is Royval’s second loss in a row after losing to now 125lb champion Joshua Van, via a Fight of the Night, unanimous decision back in June. Brandon is 2-2 since an unsuccessful title shot to the former champion, Alexandre Pantoja, in December of 2023.

The perfect bout for Royval at this point, is to take on Tim Elliot. Tim has a whacky striking style, much like Brandon does. Elliot is currently ranked at #8 in the division and is coming off of a second-round guillotine finish against Kai Asakura back in August. That was the last time fans had seen the now 38-year-old Tim Elliot, in the octagon in nearly two years. Elliot is 10-11 in the UFC and the would be a fight that could keep Royval active while a lot of the other ranked fighters have matchups. This could be fight night card headliner or co main event.

Royval’s next fight: Tim Elliot

Giga Chikadze

Kevin Vallejos had his highlight moment on Saturday with his spinning back fight finish of Giga Chikadze. The spectacular display of Argentine striking triggered the third set back in a row for Chikadze. And Giga has now lost four of his last five dating back to 2021. His only win in that time is to Alex Caceres, who is no longer with the promotion.  Giga lost to Calvin Kattar, Arnold Allen, David Onama (which he missed weight for) and now Kevin Vallejos. Giga entered this fight just hanging on to his spot in the rankings at #15. Obviously, that’s gone now as Kevin was unranked.

At 37 years old and with the injuries suffered in his career, it’s important for Giga to get the right matchup here. Who better than a guy like Sean Woodson? This is a matchup that was referenced in a previous loser’s article and though it’s dangerous, it has an upside for both fighters. Woodson is 7-2-1 in the UFC and recently had a 7-fight unbeaten streak snapped by Dan Ige back in April. To make matters worse for Woodson, he was stopped and shut out of the rankings. 33-year-old Woodson is 6’2″ with a 78″ reach while Giga is 6’0″ with a 74″ reach. Seans a more of a boxing striker while Giga is more kickboxing. This could offer an excellent just outside of the rankings matchup to determine which fighter lands a shot at a ranked fighter.

Chikadze’s next fight: Sean Woodson

Cesar Almedia

Cezary Oleksiejzuk tallied a victory in his UFC debut on Saturday, with a unanimous decision victory over Cesar Almedia. It was a grinding a grimy fight as Alemedia now falls to 3-2 with the promotion. His three wins against Dylan Budka, Ihor Potieria and Abdul Razak Alhassan are all against fighters who have since been cut by the promotion. Almedia is in dire need of a win here.

The perfect matchup here for Cesar is pairing him up against Marco Tulio.  Marco fought last month, getting finished via spinning backfist at the hands of Christian Leroy Duncan. That losers article referenced Tulio taking on Michel Pereira, but Pereira was instead booked against Zach Reese. Cesar would offer an excellent matchup, and the timing would work perfectly. Tulio is 2-1 with the UFC and shares a win over Ihor Potieria. Marco’s other win came back in April when he stopped Tresean Gore. Cesar went to a split decision against Roman Kopylov. But its dicey because he’s only 7-2 as a pro in MMA, not even 10 fights yet. Tulio is 14-2 and has stopped nearly everyone, it’s a dangerous matchup.

That said, Cesar was also a credentialed Glory kickboxer that faced Alex Pereira multiple times (1-2, all decisions). Book it! Sleeper of a solid fight for hardcore fans that could be a feature PPV prelim.

Almeida’s next fight: Marco Tulio 

Morgan Charriere

Melquizael Costa just barely landed a picture-perfect head kick on Morgan Charriere 74 seconds into the pair’s bout on Saturday. The highlight reel KO marked the first time that Charriere has been stopped in his 34-fight professional MMA career. Charriere is now 3-3 with the UFC but he has scored bonuses in four of his six appearances.

A great matchup for Charriere would be pitting him against Christian Rodriguez.  Christian is 5-4 with the promotion and is actually on a two-fight skid. Rodriguez has also lost to Costa, via unanimous decision back in March. The 2021 Contender Series alum, nicknamed “CeeRod”, was last in action in August with a split decision loss to UFC vet, Andre Filli. Rodriguez made a splash when he first arrived in the UFC, with victories over hot young prospects, Raul Rosas Jr and Cameron Saaiman. However, he continuously lost the fight to the scale and has since moved up to featherweight- where he’s struggled. Exciting scrap in the making here, could land nearly anywhere on a fight night card.

Charriere’s next fight: Christian Rodriguez

Lance Gibson Jr.

39-year-old King Green pieced up and secured a split decision victory over Lance Gibson Jr to kick of the main card of UFC Vegas 112 on Saturday. Gibson Jr. definitely had his moments in his short notice UFC debut, but the split decision was somewhat controversial as many fans thought the fight should have been scored as a unanimous decision (as well as King Green).

Lance, a former Bellator fighter, at 30 years old and 9-2, has a couple of directions he can go here. Jump in the deep end, so to speak, against more veteran fighters or test his metal against hungry Contender Series -type fighters. Perhaps a Contender Series alum is a more entertaining and manageable path like a fight against Terrance McKinney or Thiago Moises. Two CS guys, but tenure in the promotion too. Terrance is 2019 alum who has gone 7-5 with the promotion. While Moises is from the 2018 season and has gone 8-7.

Leaning towards McKinney, who has gone 2-2 in his last four. McKinney is known for his fights, win or lose, not making it out of the first round. Would be an interesting test for Lance who has gotten a lot of different looks/styles throughout his short, well-traveled career. Going the distance with Green on short notice is no small feat, this would be a interesting matchup for fans to watch next.

Gibson’s next fight: Terrance McKinney or Thiago Moises

Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha

Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha fought to a draw on Saturday in what was an action-packed bout. The bout ultimately ended up being decided by a point deduction by Kennedy for eye poking, otherwise he would have logged a victory.

Kennedy’s next fight should be against Martin Buday. Kennedy and Martin were scheduled to fight back in April, but it was cancelled after Nzechukwu withdrew. However, Buday has since released by the promotion (despite coming off a win and going 7-1 with the promotion since 2021). So instead, Kennedy should take on Louie Sutherland who is 0-1 with the UFC. Sutherland made his debut against Valter Walker in late October. Walker heel hooked “The Vanilla Gorilla” in just 84 seconds. Valter did the same to Kennedy back in July but that time took under a minute. Match these two up. Slim pickings here.

As for Buchecha, Marcus should fight Mohammed Usman in his next fight. Mohammed is 4-2 in the UFC and was last in the octagon back in June with a unanimous decision against Hamdy Abdelwahab. Hamdy has since been released by the promotion. Prior to that, Mohammed dropped fights to Thomas Petersen and Mick Parkin.

Both of these men are in dangerous territory as the promotion has cleared out several guys that these guys have fought. Anything could happen here. Nice to book with the loser or both guys, or neither facing the axe.

Nzechukwu’s next fight: Louie Sutherland

Buchecha’s next fight: Mohammed Usman

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]]> Manel Kape Knocks Out Brandon Royval in First Round, Shakes Up Flyweight Title Picture https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/14/manel-kape-knocks-out-brandon-royval-in-first-round-shakes-up-flyweight-title-picture/ Sun, 14 Dec 2025 06:06:21 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218678 UFC Vegas 112 closed out the year with a high-stakes flyweight showdown, as Brandon Royval and Manel Kape stepped into the spotlight for a main event that could reshape the title picture. Both contenders arrived on Saturday night prepared to make a definitive statement in a division suddenly wide open. Royval (17-8) is looking to […]

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UFC Vegas 112 closed out the year with a high-stakes flyweight showdown, as Brandon Royval and Manel Kape stepped into the spotlight for a main event that could reshape the title picture. Both contenders arrived on Saturday night prepared to make a definitive statement in a division suddenly wide open.

Royval (17-8) is looking to climb back into title contention following his loss to Joshua Van at UFC 317, a setback that snapped his two-fight winning streak. That victory propelled Van into a championship bout with Alexandre Pantoja, where he went on to claim the flyweight title.

Kape (21-7) aimed to secure his third straight victory by defeating Royval at the UFC APEX. Though injuries and inconsistency have disrupted his UFC run, a win over a recent title challenger could be enough to place him firmly in the conversation for a shot at Van.

Round 1 – Kape opened the fight by attacking Royval’s lead leg with calf kicks, testing the movement of the ever-elusive flyweight. Royval responded with body kicks, clearly intent on avoiding prolonged exchanges inside Kape’s punching range. The two continued trading kicks as they worked to establish rhythm.

Royval landed a hard body kick that forced a reaction from Kape, though he wasn’t close enough to capitalize. Gaining confidence, Royval began to open up with combinations, many partially blocked or missing the mark, but enough to keep Kape on the defensive.

Kape then pressed forward after another body kick, firing a flurry that nearly backed Royval to the fence. During an exchange, Royval appeared to tweak something, briefly limping before resettling into his pace.

But moments later, Kape found the opening he needed. He cracked Royval with a clean, heavy right hand that dropped him instantly, prompting Herb Dean to wave off the fight.

A massive statement win for Manel Kape.

Official Result: Manel Kape def. Brandon Royval via R1 TKO, 3:18

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]]> “Dog Walk Him”: Brandon Royval Promises Violence in Main Event vs. Kape https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/12/dog-walk-him-brandon-royval-promises-violence-in-main-event-vs-kape/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 23:23:49 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218611 Brandon Royval enters UFC Vegas 112 with more than a main-event spotlight on his shoulders, he steps into the final card of the year knowing a title shot may hang in the balance. With Manel Kape standing in his way, the flyweight contender finds himself once again chasing momentum that he hopes leads him to […]

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]]>

Brandon Royval enters UFC Vegas 112 with more than a main-event spotlight on his shoulders, he steps into the final card of the year knowing a title shot may hang in the balance. With Manel Kape standing in his way, the flyweight contender finds himself once again chasing momentum that he hopes leads him to UFC gold.

Royval (17-8) has never shied away from embracing chaos, and he expects nothing less in Saturday’s flyweight headliner. Confident in both his pressure and pace, he made it clear he plans to dictate the fight from the opening bell.

“Just want to walk him down. I just want to get in his face, put a leash on him, and dog walk his ass all around that cage,” Royval told reporters on Wednesday.

“I’m sure we’re going to bang it out.”

Royval knows exactly what fans expect when his name is on a marquee, and he’s leaning into the reputation he’s built over years of all-action performances. As he prepares for another high-stakes showcase, he’s embracing the chaos that has defined his style.

“I’m sure it’s going to be an exciting fight. I don’t have this many ‘fight of the night’s’ for no reason. I guess it’s time to connect another one,” he said.

The UFC flyweight title recently changed hands when Joshua Van became the new champion after Alexandre Pantoja suffered an injury just seconds into their fight. Royval, who lost to Van in June, shared his thoughts on the division’s newly crowned titleholder.

“I just kinda thought I was a f*cking idiot (when I fought Van). When you watch the fight back, and to be fair I really just told everybody what I was going to do and I went out there and did it. I went there and tried to box a boxer,” said Royval.

“I wanted to fight in the pocket, really wanted to just give the fans fight of the night.”

Royval didn’t hide his intentions against Van. He talked openly about his game plan leading into the fight, and then followed through with it, even against his coaches’ wishes.

“My corner strongly advised against that, but maybe if the last ten seconds doesn’t happen I win fighting his style,” he said.

“That being said now I just get to go out there and make up for it, fight Manel Kape, and show what I can do.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Brandon Royval above. He faces Manel Kape in the main event of UFC Vegas 112 on Saturday night.

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]]> Manel Kape Seeks “Masterpiece” Win in Long-Awaited Showdown With Royval https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/12/manel-kape-seeks-masterpiece-win-in-long-awaited-showdown-with-royval/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 13:08:18 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218532 Manel Kape returns to the spotlight at UFC Vegas 112 on Saturday night, stepping into a high-stakes flyweight showdown with former title challenger Brandon Royval in a matchup that could thrust him into a title shot sooner than later. Kape (21-7) Kape reflected on what was supposed to be a pivotal year, one that didn’t […]

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Manel Kape returns to the spotlight at UFC Vegas 112 on Saturday night, stepping into a high-stakes flyweight showdown with former title challenger Brandon Royval in a matchup that could thrust him into a title shot sooner than later.

Kape (21-7) Kape reflected on what was supposed to be a pivotal year, one that didn’t unfold the way he initially planned. Still, the flyweight contender insists he never lost perspective, even after a summer matchup with Royval fell through due to injury.

“I (wouldn’t) say that ‘frustrating’ is the right word because, for me, saying ‘frustrated’ is a feeling of jealousy, and I don’t have any jealous to anyone,” Kape told reporters on Wednesday

“My life is great, my career is great. I’ve achieved a lot of things. I just believe that things happen for a reason. Things just (go) the way (they) have to be. I know my time is coming.”

This is the third time Kape and Royval have been scheduled to fight. While many fighters might just want the matchup over with at this point, Kape has used the extended wait as an opportunity to study Royval even more closely.

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]]> UFC Vegas 112: Royval vs. Kape Weigh-In Results https://cagesidepress.com/2025/12/12/ufc-vegas-112-royval-vs-kape-weigh-in-results/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 13:00:39 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=218555 The end of an era. For all intents and purposes, last weekend’s UFC 323 was the big sendoff, but the final event of 2025 for the promotion, and the final event of its ESPN broadcast deal, instead arrives this Saturday with UFC Vegas 112. It’s not a card that will blow anyone’s socks off. A […]

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]]> The end of an era. For all intents and purposes, last weekend’s UFC 323 was the big sendoff, but the final event of 2025 for the promotion, and the final event of its ESPN broadcast deal, instead arrives this Saturday with UFC Vegas 112.

It’s not a card that will blow anyone’s socks off. A solid flyweight headliner between Brandon Royval and Manel Kape, only for the booking to fall through. A full seven fighters will make their promotional debuts prior to that, including ex-Bellator MMA welterweight champ Yaroslav Amosov, and second-generation UFC fighter (as of Saturday) Lance Gibson Jr., another Bellator ex-pat and one of four Canadians fighting at the event.

Weigh-ins for UFC Vegas 112 take place Friday, starting at 12PM ET, 9AM PT in Las Vegas. Full results can be found below.

UFC Vegas 112: Royval vs. Kape Weigh-In Results

Main card

Flyweight: Brandon Royval (126) vs. Manel Kape (126)
Featherweight: Giga Chikadze (146) vs. Kevin Vallejos (145)
Middleweight: César Almeida (186) vs. Cezary Oleksiejczuk (185.5)
Featherweight: Melquizael Costa (145.5) vs. Morgan Charrière (145.5)
Heavyweight: Kennedy Nzechukwu (243) vs. Marcus Buchecha (251.5)
Catchweight (160lb): King Green (158.5) vs. Lance Gibson Jr. (158.5)

Preliminary card

Women’s Strawweight: Amanda Lemos (115.5) vs. Gillian Robertson (116)
Featherweight: Joanderson Brito (145.5) vs. Isaac Thomson (146)
Welterweight: Neil Magny (171) vs. Yaroslav Amosov (171)
Heavyweight: Sean Sharaf (251) vs. Steven Asplund (261)
Women’s Bantamweight: Melissa Croden (136) vs. Luana Santos (136)
Heavyweight: Allen Frye (242) vs. Guilherme Pat (238)
Women’s Flyweight: Jamey-Lyn Horth (126) vs. Tereza Bledá (126)

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]]> Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape (Hopefully) Headlines Final UFC Event on ESPN https://cagesidepress.com/2025/09/01/brandon-royval-vs-manel-kape-hopefully-headlines-final-ufc-event-on-espn/ Tue, 02 Sep 2025 01:36:15 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=213894 They’ve been booked twice already this year, and the UFC is no doubt hoping the third time will be the charm for Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape. A highly anticipated battle of top 10 flyweights, Royval (17-8) versus Kape (21-7) is now set to headline a UFC Fight Night event in Las Vegas on December […]

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]]> They’ve been booked twice already this year, and the UFC is no doubt hoping the third time will be the charm for Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape.

A highly anticipated battle of top 10 flyweights, Royval (17-8) versus Kape (21-7) is now set to headline a UFC Fight Night event in Las Vegas on December 13, 2025. That date will mark the final UFC event on ESPN, as the promotion makes the jump to streaming service Paramount+ in 2026 as its new U.S. broadcast home.

The bout was originally scheduled for a Fight Night card on March 1, 2025, then shifted to June’s UFC 317 after Royval was injured. The second pairing was also nixed; that time around, it was Kape withdrawing due to injury.

Eurosport was first to report the third booking, with Bradon Royval confirming the date on social media. The December 13 event at the UFC Apex will be UFC Vegas 112 as things stand.

Royval would go on to face Joshua Van on short notice at UFC 317, losing a Fight of the Night-winning thriller. Prior to that, he’d won back-to-back fights against Tatsuro Taira and ex-flyweight champ Brandon Moreno.

In 2019, Brandon Royval faced off with flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja, losing a unanimous decision after five rounds.

Kape, a former RIZIN star, is 6-1 across his last seven fights, with the lone loss in that span coming against Muhammad Mokaev, since exiled by the UFC. He’s finished Bruno Silva and Asu Almabayev in his last two outings.

Since arriving in the UFC in 2020, Manel Kape has seen no fewer than 11 bookings cancelled.

Royval sits at #3 and Kape at #7 in the UFC’s flyweight division.

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]]> What’s Next: UFC 317 Losers https://cagesidepress.com/2025/06/30/whats-next-ufc-317-losers/ Tue, 01 Jul 2025 00:05:59 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=210703 UFC 317 delivered an entertaining night of fights for 2025’s International Fight Week closer. The 11-fight card featured six finishes including two to cap off the night. In the co-main event, Alexandre Pantoja successfully defended his flyweight belt, submitting Kai Kara-France in the third round. In the main event, for the vacant lightweight championship, Illia […]

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]]> UFC 317 delivered an entertaining night of fights for 2025’s International Fight Week closer. The 11-fight card featured six finishes including two to cap off the night. In the co-main event, Alexandre Pantoja successfully defended his flyweight belt, submitting Kai Kara-France in the third round. In the main event, for the vacant lightweight championship, Illia Topuria flatlined Charles Oliveira to successfully become the only undefeated double champion in UFC history. The losers off of this card are some high-ranking fighters so the matchups produced from this event will be some high stakes affairs.

Charles Oliveira

Illia Topuria took just one round to KO Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC lightweight title in the main event of UFC 317 on Saturday. Charles has now gone 3-3 in his last six fights since losing the belt in March of 2022 (as a result of missing weight ahead of his victory over Justin Gaethje). Saturday was a humbling showing for Charles as it was the first time UFC fans have seen him flatlined in 15 years and 35 fights with the promotion. Charles turns 36 later this year and could face whispers from the fan base of considering retirement.

However, Oliveira’s next matchup has a lot to do with what direction UFC brass want to go in as well as a couple of fight outcomes. Oliveira would be an excellent litmus test for a fighter like Paddy Pimblett who is currently ranked at #8 in the lightweight division. Many have debated whether Paddy has truly faced elite level competition on his ascent thru the rankings. Oliveira would offer just that.

However, a matchup against a former featherweight like Max Holloway would also draw a lot of fans. And both fighters are now at similar stages of their careers with their shared fight outcomes against Illia. Max is currently ranked at #4 in the lightweight division. Holloway is scheduled to fight Dustin Poirier for the BMF belt on July 19th (Poirier has already announced that it’ll be his retirement fight). Great fights either way all depends on Oliveira’s recovery timeline amongst other moving parts.

Oliveira’s next fight: Max Holloway or Paddy Pimblett 

Kai Kara-France

Kai Kara-France looked completely outgunned and overmatched on his way to a third-round submission defeat at the hands of the UFC flyweight champion, Alexandre Pantoja, in the UFC 317 co-headliner. Kara-France has now actually lost three of his last four fights, beginning with an unsuccessful title shot against Brandon Moreno in July of 2022. Kara-France was ranked at #4 headed into this bout.

Kai has a couple of different directions he can go in here based on timing. Manel Kape, who is ranked at #6, would be an excellent opponent but he is currently recovering from injury. A rematch with Brandon Royval could also make sense. Kara-France lost to Royval in 2020 via second round submission. Royval also lost on Saturday. But the fight that would make the most sense would be for Kai to face the winner of Asu Almabayev vs Ramazan Temirov. That fight goes down on July 26. Not too bad in terms of timing-but Asu is ranked at #8 while Ramazan Temirov is ranked at #13.

Almabayev was 4-0 in the UFC until he was stopped, albeit controversially, by Manel Kape in the third round of their fight back in March. Temirov had his first fight in the UFC in just October of last year, stopping CJ Vegara in the first round. Temirov was last in the cage back in March when he defeated Charles Johnson. Putting Kai against the winner of this bout would insert some fresh faces with some impressive records into the mix of the elite ranks. Could make for an interesting fight night main event as well.

Kara-France’s next fight: Asu Almabayev vs Ramazan Temirov winner or Manel Kape

Brandon Royval

Brandon Royval lost an epic unanimous decision against short notice replacement, Joshua Van, on Saturday. Royval was booked  to take on Manel Kape but that fight was called off after Kape suffered a foot injury. That fight was originally supposed to take place back in March, but Royval had to withdraw from that bout with an injury of his own. Royval entered the fight ranked at #1 while Van was ranked at #12. Huge upset.

This bout scored a Fight of the Night bonus and Royval also received his win bonus for his phenomenal effort. Royval should have his fight with Kape rebooked for his next outing. Thats what makes the most sense especially with the fight outcome Saturday (and Van likely fighting for the belt). If that fight doesn’t materialize then potentially giving Royval, the winner of #14 Kai Asakura vs #10 Tim Elliot could be a good fight too. But that’s also another risky fight for Brandon after he just took one on Saturday. Ideal world, Kape is healed up by years end and hopefully they can get something in by 2026.

Royval’s next fight: Manel Kape or Tim Elliot vs. Kai Asakura winner

Renato Moicano

Renato Moicano lost a competitive unanimous decision to Beneil Dariush on the main card of UFC 317 on Saturday. The two were originally supposed to fight back in January before Renato was rebooked (saving the UFC 311 main event opposite Islam Makhachev). Moicano has now lost two fights in a row since ripping off his four-fight win streak featuring three finishes from 2022-2024. Dariush entered the fight ranked at #9 while Moicano was ranked at #11.

Renato should take on Joel Alvarez in his next fight. Joel is 7-2 with the UFC since being signed in 2019 and is ranked at #15. Alvarez is on a three-fight win streak stopping Marc Diakiese, Elves Brener and most recently, Drakkar Klose, back in December. Joel was slated to take on Benoit Saint-Denis on May 10 but withdrew from that bout. BSD fought Renato in September of last year losing via doctor’s stoppage. This fight would be a great matchup between two pretty rangy strikers and would be a fun scrap for fans. Could easily be on a PPV card main card as well. Winner propels themselves into the top 10 of the lightweight division with an impressive finish.

Moicano’s next fight: Joel Alvarez

Felipe Lima

Felipe Lima was outfought by Payton Talbott on the way to a unanimous decision defeat to open up the main card of UFC 317 on Saturday. It was Lima’s first time competing at bantamweight within the UFC as he was 2-0 as a featherweight under the promotional banner.

A good opponent for Lima would be a fighter like John Castaneda. The 2017 Contender Series alum is 4-4 with the UFC but has consistently had trouble making 135lbs. He’s a tough scrappy fighter that’s always in high-action competitive bouts. Castaneda last fought back in April when he dropped a split decision to Chris Gutierrez. That’d be a high talent level ‘under-the-radar’ type of fight that a lot of hardcore fans would tune in for.  A backup option for Lima would be the Da’Mon Blackshear vs Davey Grant fight winner. That fight is scheduled for July 26. Both fighters are grappling heavy and with an impressive win out of either man it could make sense for a date with Lima. However, the optimal matchup is definitely Castaneda.

Lima’s next fight: John Castaneda or Da’Mon Blackshear vs. Davey Grant winner

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]]> Van vs. Royval Flyweight Classic Earns Fight of the Night at UFC 317 https://cagesidepress.com/2025/06/29/van-vs-royval-flyweight-classic-earns-fight-of-the-night-at-ufc-317/ Sun, 29 Jun 2025 13:28:13 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=210650 UFC 317 didn’t feel like other International Fight Week cards on paper. A bit thin, if you will. A lack of star power outside of the main event. Yet in the end, it seems the UFC matchmakers knew what they were doing. Thunderous finishes, hotly contested back-and-forth battles, and a new double-champ all emerged from […]

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]]> UFC 317 didn’t feel like other International Fight Week cards on paper.

A bit thin, if you will. A lack of star power outside of the main event. Yet in the end, it seems the UFC matchmakers knew what they were doing. Thunderous finishes, hotly contested back-and-forth battles, and a new double-champ all emerged from the Las Vegas-based card on Saturday.

The UFC’s flyweight division was once on life support, much maligned and unable to get anything more than a yawn out of fans, despite the dominance of then-champ Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson. These days, the 125lb weight class might be the UFC’s most improved, and on Saturday, Brandon Royval and Joshua Van demonstrated just that, putting on an instant classic that Joe Rogan later called once of the best flyweight fights ever.

Van, red-hot of late and making a quick turnaround, came away with a unanimous decision win over the former title challenger- and punched his own ticket to a title shot. He was brought into the cage later in the evening to face off with Alexandre Pantoja, who had choked out Kai Kara-France in the UFC 317 co-main event. Van has won five fights in roughly nine months, a Cowboy-like pace. In addition to the title shot, he and Royval were awarded Fight of the Night on Saturday, and deservedly so.

Performance of the Night bonuses went to Gregory Rodrigues, who knocked Jack Hermansson out cold (yes, the follow-up punch was unnecessary, but not the fault of “Robocop,” one of the nicest fighters you’ll meet, but rather ref Herb Dean getting to the scene a step or two late), and headliner Ilia Topuria. Claiming a second title at lightweight after vacating his featherweight belt, “El Matador” knocked out Charles Oliveira inside of a round to etch his name in the history books and improve to 17-0.

All four bonus-winners pocket the usual $50,000 U.S. on top of their purse and outfitting pay.

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]]> Joshua Van Takes Decision Over Royval In FOTY Candidate https://cagesidepress.com/2025/06/28/joshua-van-takes-decision-over-royval-in-foty-candidate/ Sun, 29 Jun 2025 03:56:00 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=210564 UFC flyweight Brandon Royval was on a mission for a rematch with champ Alexandre Pantoja, but rising star Joshua Van looked to spoil his plans at UFC 317 on Saturday night. Royval (17-7) has challenged Pantoja before losing via decision at UFC 296 in 2023. Since then he’s put together two victories and was set […]

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]]> UFC flyweight Brandon Royval was on a mission for a rematch with champ Alexandre Pantoja, but rising star Joshua Van looked to spoil his plans at UFC 317 on Saturday night.

Royval (17-7) has challenged Pantoja before losing via decision at UFC 296 in 2023. Since then he’s put together two victories and was set for fight Manel Kape at UFC 317, but lost the opponent to injury.

Van (14-2) stepped in for the injured Kape as he continued his spectacular run into stardom. Coming into UFC 317 with a 4-fight win streak he looked to steal Royval’s title shot on Saturday night.

Round 1 Royval came out using his range and throwing high volume with kicks and jabs. Van was very patient and literally waited for openings, but when he got them, he made them all count. The volume was clearly on Royval’s side, but the damage belonged to Van.

Round 2 Royval came out with the same game plan, but added power to his shots. He accepted that he’d take some damage in order to land and turned the pace and heat up. Van matched him with a ton of power.

Round 3 was a masterpiece in two fighters accepting that they were going to get hit and take damage and still went for the win. Royval went in with a ton of combos, but Van matched the intensity with fury in his punches. Near the end of the fight he dropped Royval and looked for the finish, but proved to be very tough.

The judges had an incredibly tough task of picking a winner, but the fight was clearly one of the best flyweight fights of the year if not all time.

Official Result: Joshua Van def. Brandon Royval via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

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]]> Brandon Royval Not Overlooking Joshua Van Ahead of UFC 317, Staying Close to Flyweight Title https://cagesidepress.com/2025/06/25/brandon-royval-not-overlooking-joshua-van-ahead-of-ufc-317-staying-close-to-flyweight-title/ Wed, 25 Jun 2025 23:48:13 +0000 https://cagesidepress.com/?p=210259 Former UFC flyweight title contender Brandon Royval takes on Joshua Van in a pivotal flyweight title eliminator on the main card of UFC 317 this Saturday. The fight wasn’t always scheduled on the main mard, as Brandon Royval was initially booked on the prelims before an opponent change led to a larger opportunity. “We got […]

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]]> Former UFC flyweight title contender Brandon Royval takes on Joshua Van in a pivotal flyweight title eliminator on the main card of UFC 317 this Saturday.

The fight wasn’t always scheduled on the main mard, as Brandon Royval was initially booked on the prelims before an opponent change led to a larger opportunity.

“We got boosted up to the main card cause of Joshua Van… three weeks ago, it was Joshua Van’s fight week and me and the boys were ready to watch. Now I gotta go fight him and be a part of it,” Royval told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.

Royval’s original opponent was none other than Manel Kape, whose injury marked the second cancellation of their bout. Instead of rescheduling that matchup, the UFC jumped on giving a rising flyweight star, Van, the chance to fight Brandon Royval.

Brandon Royval Sees No Experience Advantage

When asked about his experience difference, Royval brushed off any advantages he may have due to Van’s activity.

“His experience is catching up, it’s not like I’m going to go in there thinking anything different… He’s fought on some of the biggest cards of the year, I don’t take any of that as anything,” Royval said, referring to his experience.

The Colorado native didn’t mind the switch of opponents at all, citing Van’s hype and style as the main factors.

“If you compare Joshua Van to Manel Kape, their best wins are the same. What they bring is a little bit of the same.” Royval even went as far as saying, “Joshua Van might be beating them in cooler ways.”

“I still got the realest opponent out there. I still got some kid that’s ready to take everything from me. The most dangerous person is someone with nothing to lose, and he has nothing to lose at all.”

Watch the entire media day scrum with Brandon Royval above. He faces Joshua Van at UFC 317 on Saturday night.

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