MEXICO CITY, MEXICO – Denver’s very own Brandon ‘RawDawg’ Royval defeated former champion and current No. 1 contender Brandon Moreno in the main event at UFC Mexico. Royval got his hand raised after 25 minutes of grueling action in front of 21,546 fans who packed the Arena CDMX for a sold out event.
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO – FEBRUARY 24: (L-R) Brandon Royval punches Brandon Moreno of Mexico in a flyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Arena CDMX on February 24, 2024 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Moreno’s home crowd was filled with passionate fans who had the fighter spirit. In the massive crowd fight that went viral, the guy in the black shirt has a left hook that even Alex Pereira would be proud of.
In Royval’s case, he is a Mexican-American born and raised in Denver, CO, but he too credits his success to his Mexican heritage. He led off his post fight interview by saying to the crowd, “I’m a third-generation Mexican, I know that doesn’t count, but the only reason I get through this sh*t is because I got that Mexican heart like all you guys.”
Royval continued, “The Mexican heart that bleeds through my veins is the only reason I’m here right now… The best part of me is you.”
The official decision for the fight was a Split Decision with two cards 48-47 for Royval and a 49-46 Moreno card. Junichiro Kamijo had the inexplicable 49-46 card. It was a close fight, but there is absolutely no way that anyone can have accurately scored four rounds for Moreno. This is yet another example of why judges should have to explain their scorecards.
When Royval was asked if he thought he did enough to get the win, he replied, “I’m a f****** gangster… I’m the realest one in this f****** flyweight division. Everyone wants to grab me all day. Speaking of grabbing, I hear (Alexandre) Pantoja is in the building. Let’s run that s*** back mother f*****”
The current UFC Flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja was sitting cageside and appeared to welcome the challenge. The UFC returns to Rio de Janeiro for UFC 301 on May 4th and is currently in need of a main event. A trilogy title fight between Pantoja and Royval fills that need.
With the potential quick turnaround, ESPN’s Paul Felder asked Royval what would be different this time around in a Pantoja rematch and Royval said that he won’t be held down again. “I’m going to people’s houses and I’m taking their f****** s***. All day.”
On Instagram this morning, Royval said that he believes he might have torn his MCL in the first minute of the first round. Once he is able to begin training again, the RawDawg Revenge Tour has its sights set on UFC 301 in Rio.
