Brandon Matthew Royval (born August 6, 1992) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional competitor since 2012, Royval has also formerly competed for Legacy Fighting Alliance, where he is a former Legacy Fighting Alliance Flyweight Champion. As of February 17, 2023, he is #4 in the UFC flyweight rankings.

Background

Born and raised in Denver, Brandon was already training

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting ( ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

and

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

at the age of 15. Royval has an older brother, Darian.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Royval took his first amateur bout at the age of 18, racking up a 5–0 record. Starting his professional career in 2012, Royval compiled a 8–3 record fighting mostly for Legacy Fighting Alliance, eventually culminating in a shot for the interim LFA Flyweight Championship against Casey Kenney, which he lost by unanimous decision. Brandon Royval next faced UFC vet, Joby Sanchez at LFA 65 on May 3, 2019, losing the bout via submission due to an armbar in the first round. Royval was going to face Jared Scoggins for the vacant LFA flyweight title on November 22, 2019 until Scoggins pulled out of the fight. Nate Williams stepped up as a replacement and Royval won the LFA Flyweight title via first round armbar.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Brandon made his UFC debut on May 30, 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Woodley vs. Burns against Tim Elliott. He won the fight via submission in the second round. This fight earned Royval a ''Fight of the Night'' award. Royval faced Kai Kara-France on September 27, 2020 at UFC 253. After both fighters being knocked down in the first round, Royval won the fight via submission in the second round. This fight earned him the '' Fight of the Night'' award. Royval was a replacement for Alex Perez against Brandon Moreno on November 21, 2020 at UFC 255. He lost the fight via technical knockout on round one. Royval faced Alexandre Pantoja on August 21, 2021 UFC on ESPN 29. He lost the fight via rear-naked choke in round two. Royval faced Rogério Bontorin on January 15, 2022 at UFC on ESPN 32. He won the fight via split decision. Royval faced Matt Schnell on May 7, 2022 at UFC 274. He won the back-and-forth fight via a guillotine choke submission in the first round. The fight also won both men the '' Fight of the Night'' bonus award. Royval was scheduled to face Askar Askarov on October 15, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 212. However the bout was cancelled the day before the event due to weight management issues. Royval was set to face Amir Albazi at UFC Fight Night 216 on December 17, 2022. However, Royval pulled out of the bout in late November due to a broken wrist. Royval is schedule to face Matheus Nicolau on April 15, 2023 at

UFC on ESPN 44 ''UFC on ESPN: Holloway vs. Allen'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 44'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 15, 2023, at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, United State ...

Personal life

After the win against Kai Kara-France, Royval quit his full-time job in the juvenile justice system. He also works as the jiu-jitsu instructor at Factory X.

Championships and accomplishments

* Ultimate Fighting Championship ** Fight of the Night (Three times) * Legacy Fighting Alliance **Legacy Fighting Alliance Flyweight Champion (One time)

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Royval, Brandon 1992 births Living people American male mixed martial artists Flyweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters Sportspeople from Denver Mixed martial artists from Colorado American Muay Thai practitioners American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu