| Brandon Royval | |
|---|---|
| Born | Brandon Matthew Royval (1992-08-16)August 16, 1992 (age 33) Denver, Colorado, U.S. |
| Other names | Raw Dawg |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Weight | 125 lb (57 kg; 8 st 13 lb) |
| Division | Flyweight |
| Reach | 68 in (173 cm)[1] |
| Fighting out of | Englewood, Colorado, U.S. |
| Team | Factory X |
| Rank | Black belt inBrazilian jiu-jitsu[2] under Mario "Busy" Correa[3] |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 25 |
| Wins | 17 |
| By knockout | 4 |
| By submission | 9 |
| By decision | 4 |
| Losses | 8 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 1 |
| By decision | 6 |
| Other information | |
| Mixed martial arts record fromSherdog | |
Brandon Matthew Royval[4] (born August 16, 1992) is an American professionalmixed martial artist. He currently competes in theFlyweight division of theUltimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2012, Royval has also formerly competed forLegacy Fighting Alliance, where he is a formerLegacy Fighting Alliance Flyweight Champion. As of July 1, 2025, he is #3 in theUFC flyweight rankings.[5]
Born and raised in Denver, Brandon was already trainingBrazilian jiu-jitsu andMuay Thai at the age of 15.[6] Royval has an older brother, Darian.[6]
Royval took his first amateur bout at the age of 18, racking up a 5–0 record.[6] Starting his professional career in 2012, Royval compiled an 8–3 record fighting mostly forLegacy Fighting Alliance, eventually culminating in a shot for the interim LFA Flyweight Championship againstCasey Kenney, which he lost by unanimous decision.[7]
Brandon Royval next faced UFC vet, Joby Sanchez at LFA 65 on May 3, 2019, winning the bout via submission due to an armbar in the first round.[8]
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.[9]
Brandon made his UFC debut on May 30, 2020 atUFC on ESPN: Woodley vs. Burns againstTim Elliott.[10] He won the fight via submission in the second round.[11] This fight earned Royval aFight of the Night award.[12]
Royval facedKai Kara-France on September 27, 2020 atUFC 253.[13] After both fighters being knocked down in the first round, Royval won the fight via submission in the second round.[14] This fight earned him theFight of the Night award.[15]
Royval was a replacement forAlex Perez againstBrandon Moreno on November 21, 2020 atUFC 255.[16] He lost the fight via technical knockout on round one.[17]
Royval facedAlexandre Pantoja on August 21, 2021UFC on ESPN 29.[18] He lost the fight via rear-naked choke in round two.[19]
Royval facedRogério Bontorin on January 15, 2022 atUFC on ESPN 32.[20] He won the fight via split decision.[21]
Royval facedMatt Schnell on May 7, 2022 atUFC 274.[22] He won the back-and-forth fight via a guillotine choke submission in the first round.[23] The fight also won both men theFight of the Night bonus award.[24]
Royval was scheduled to faceAskar Askarov on October 15, 2022 atUFC Fight Night 212.[25] However the bout was cancelled the day before the event due to weight management issues.[26]
Royval was set to faceAmir Albazi atUFC Fight Night 216 on December 17, 2022.[27] However, Royval pulled out of the bout in late November due to a broken wrist.[28]
Royval facedMatheus Nicolau on April 15, 2023 atUFC on ESPN 44.[29] He won the fight via knockout in the first round.[30] This win earned him thePerformance of the Night award.[31]
Royval had a rematch withAlexandre Pantoja for theUFC Flyweight Championship title on December 16, 2023, atUFC 296.[32] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.[33]
Royval faced formerUFC Flyweight ChampionBrandon Moreno in a rematch, replacingAmir Albazi, atUFC Fight Night 237 on February 24, 2024.[34] He won the fight via split decision.[35] 13 out of 18 media outlets scored the bout for Royval.[36]
As the last bout of his prevailing contract, Royval faced formerShooto Flyweight ChampionTatsuro Taira on October 12, 2024 in the main event atUFC Fight Night 244.[37] He won the fight by split decision.[38] This fight earned him anotherFight of the Night award.[39]
Royval was scheduled to face formerRIZIN Bantamweight ChampionManel Kape on March 1, 2025 in the main event atUFC Fight Night 253.[40] However, due to multiple concussions, Royval pulled out of the fight.[41][42] The bout was rescheduled to take place on June 28, 2025 atUFC 317.[42] However, Kape pulled out due to a fractured foot and was replaced byJoshua Van.[43] Royval lost the fight by unanimous decision.[44] This fight earned him anotherFight of the Night award.[45] Royval and Van landed a total of 419 significant strikes, which broke the record for most significant strikes landed in a three-round UFC fight and flyweight bout.[46]
Royval has been re-scheduled for the third time to faceManel Kape which will take place on December 13, 2025, atUFC on ESPN 73.[47]
Royval grew up in a Mexican family.[48] After his win againstKai Kara-France, Royval left his full-time job in the juvenile justice system.[9] He also worked as the jiu-jitsu instructor at Factory X.[49]
| 25 matches | 17 wins | 8 losses |
| By knockout | 4 | 1 |
| By submission | 9 | 1 |
| By decision | 4 | 6 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 17–8 | Joshua Van | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 317 | June 28, 2025 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 17–7 | Tatsuro Taira | Decision (split) | UFC Fight Night: Royval vs. Taira | October 12, 2024 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 16–7 | Brandon Moreno | Decision (split) | UFC Fight Night: Moreno vs. Royval 2 | February 24, 2024 | 5 | 5:00 | Mexico City, Mexico | |
| Loss | 15–7 | Alexandre Pantoja | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 296 | December 16, 2023 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | For theUFC Flyweight Championship. |
| Win | 15–6 | Matheus Nicolau | KO (knee and elbows) | UFC on ESPN: Holloway vs. Allen | April 15, 2023 | 1 | 2:09 | Kansas City, Missouri, United States | Performance of the Night. |
| Win | 14–6 | Matt Schnell | Submission (guillotine choke) | UFC 274 | May 7, 2022 | 1 | 2:14 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 13–6 | Rogério Bontorin | Decision (split) | UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Chikadze | January 15, 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Loss | 12–6 | Alexandre Pantoja | Submission (rear-naked choke) | UFC on ESPN: Cannonier vs. Gastelum | August 21, 2021 | 2 | 1:46 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Loss | 12–5 | Brandon Moreno | TKO (punches) | UFC 255 | November 21, 2020 | 1 | 4:59 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 12–4 | Kai Kara-France | Submission (guillotine choke) | UFC 253 | September 27, 2020 | 2 | 0:48 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 11–4 | Tim Elliott | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | UFC on ESPN: Woodley vs. Burns | May 30, 2020 | 2 | 3:18 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Fight of the Night. |
| Win | 10–4 | Nate Williams | Submission (armbar) | LFA 79 | November 22, 2019 | 1 | 0:23 | Broomfield, Colorado, United States | Won the vacantLFA Flyweight Championship. |
| Win | 9–4 | Joby Sanchez | Submission (armbar) | LFA 65 | May 3, 2019 | 1 | 3:17 | Vail, Colorado, United States | |
| Loss | 8–4 | Casey Kenney | Decision (unanimous) | LFA 53 | November 9, 2018 | 5 | 5:00 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | For the interimLFA Flyweight Championship. |
| Win | 8–3 | Charles Johnson | Decision (unanimous) | LFA 48 | September 7, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | Kearney, Nebraska, United States | |
| Win | 7–3 | Jerome Rivera | TKO (arm injury) | LFA 39 | May 4, 2018 | 1 | 0:40 | Vail, Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 6–3 | Demetrius Wilson | Submission (triangle choke) | LFA 22 | September 8, 2017 | 2 | 2:00 | Broomfield, Colorado, United States | |
| Loss | 5–3 | Nick Urso | Decision (split) | LFA 10 | April 21, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Pueblo, Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 5–2 | Rakan Adwan | Submission (armbar) | LFA 5 | February 24, 2017 | 1 | 1:54 | Broomfield, Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 4–2 | Angel Torres | Submission (triangle choke) | Sparta Combat League 53 | October 15, 2016 | 1 | 0:34 | Denver, Colorado, United States | Flyweight debut. |
| Loss | 3–2 | Ricky Palacios | Decision (unanimous) | Combate Americas: Road to the Championship 5 | May 26, 2016 | 3 | 5:00 | Los Angeles, California, United States | |
| Win | 3–1 | Danny Mainus | KO (knee) | WSOF 29 | March 12, 2016 | 1 | 2:48 | Greeley, Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 2–1 | Joey Welch | TKO (punches) | Sparta Combat League: Mile High Mayhem | August 23, 2014 | 1 | 0:51 | Denver, Colorado, United States | |
| Loss | 1–1 | Ben VomBaur | Decision (unanimous) | Kick Down MMA 104: BOOM | October 19, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Denver, Colorado, United States | Bantamweight debut. |
| Win | 1–0 | Sammy Rind | TKO (elbows) | Kick Down MMA 102: Rebels | August 17, 2012 | 1 | 1:45 | Denver, Colorado, United States | Catchweight (140 lb) bout. |
Updated to 25 November 2025 |
