The UFC has announced battle of the flyweights that goes down tomorrow with the main card featuring Brandon Royval vs Tatsuro Taira. The UFC made the annunciation on their official Social media pages, with a caption, “Battle of the Flyweights” with the event
Brandon Royval
Brandon Royval is an American professional mixed martial artist and currently competes in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Born August 16, 1992 he is 32 years old and he has a mixed martial arts record of 23 fights with 16 wins and 7 losses.
Tatsuro Taira
Tatsuro Taira is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the flyweight division of the ultimate fighting championship (UFC). Born January 27 2000, he is 24 years old and has a mixed martial arts record of 16 fights zero losses with 5 of the fights coming via knock out.
Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira Fight card, odds, start time, where to watch
An impressive performance could cement Brandon Royval or Tatsuro Taira as the next UFC flyweight title challenger. Royval and Tatsuro likely fight for Royval’s No. 1 spot in the UFC’s official flyweight rankings on Saturday. Royval (16-7) is one of the more unexpected success stories from the 125-pound division. Royval followed up a split decision loss to reigning champion Pantoja by upsetting former two-time titleholder Moreno via a split decision in Mexico. Royval took the Moreno fight on short notice and it paid off. If Royval can hand Taira his first loss, the only thing standing between Royval and another title shot is likely the outcome of Moreno vs. Amir Albazi on Nov. 2.
Royval told CBS Sports, “I overcame a lot in that Moreno fight, Not only mentally to defeat him. I went from not doing anything and being fat-fat to taking that fight on a month’s notice. I tore my MCL in the first round and still pushed through. After that first round, I got better and better.
“What’s at stake for me is losing my No. 1 position and that’s what matters most.”
Taira (No. 5) is a well-rounded force with an impressive split of knockouts, submissions and decisions. A perfect 6-0 in the UFC, Taira looks ready for a step up after consecutively finishing former title challenger Alex Perez and Carlos Hernandez. Taira is not concerned about the outcome of Moreno vs. Albazi next month despite Albazi being 17-1 and ranked No. 3 in the division. The Japanse flyweight is confident the attention is on Taira.
Odds
The CBS sports places Tatsuro Taira as the favorite with -300 odd and Brandon Royval enters the octagon as the underdog at +240 odd. The site calls the fight as a win to Royval via unanimous decision.
Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira: I see two directions for the fight: Royval outpaces Taira or Taira grounds Royval. Royval has some of the worst takedown defense among elite flyweights but he’s a hard man to dilute. Moreno only controlled him for three minutes off three takedowns in their 25-minute fight. If you can keep Royval grounded, you’ll have to deal with a blizzard of bottom strikes. Pantoja and Rogerio Bontorin took Royval down eight times apiece, controlling him for nearly 24 minutes combined, but both fights went to a split decision. Royval outstruck both opponents and beat Bontorin. Taira isn’t an elite wrestler but is competent and incredibly well-rounded. He took down Perez, one of flyweight’s best wrestlers, twice in his last fight. Taira can win this fight by incorporating enough takedowns to keep the striking lead. Royval is all offense with the stamina to support the style. I suspect he’s seasoned enough to keep Taira off him. Taira’s lack of elite flyweight experience could cost him against a title-level opponent committed to breaking him down. I’ll take Royval by decision or late stoppage.
Watch
Date: Oct. 12 | Start time: 7 p.m. ET (main card)
Location: UFC Apex -- Las Vegas
TV channel: ESPN+ UFC fight pass.com
