“We fu**** this up,” Dana White admits booking failure as ‘impressive’ Brandon Royval competed as a Prelim fighter
Dana White admits that it was a mistake to keep Flyweight Contender Brandon Royval in the prelims of UFC on ESPN 44. Amidst the confusion from Royval, White has decided to promote Royval as the backup fighter for the next Flyweight Championship.
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Dana White admits to mistake as dangerous Flyweight fighter Brandon Royval competed in the Prelims (Image Courtesy - MMA Fighting)
UFC on ESPN featured the Featherweight main event fight between Max Holloway and Arnold Allen. One fighter, in particular, stole the show at the card in Kansas City. Flyweight Contender Brandon Royval destroyed his opponent by landing a knee to the chin and got the stoppage victory with a flurry of devastating elbow strikes. In the post-fight press conference, Brandon Royval asked the UFC and Dana White why he did not fight in the main card.
Dana White had a response to the serious question. He said, “He’s not wrong. Listen, we’re really good at what we do, but we f*** up sometimes. We do. I literally said, ‘we f***** this up’. The kid should’ve opened the show tonight. He’s right. I’m always impressed when that kid fights. He’s incredible, and I knew that fight was going to be good.”
It is not every day that fight fans, and media get to see Dana White admitted that he is wrong about something. With a masterclass performance, White announced that Royval will become the backup fighter for the upcoming title fight between Brandon Moreno and Alexandre Pantoja. One day you are the prelim fighter and the next, you become the backup for a title fight. The unpredictability of the sport of MMA remains the most intriguing aspect.
Moreno and Pantoja will compete at UFC 290 for the Flyweight title. The two fighters had fought before in the Ultimate Fighter Flyweight season in 2016, where Pantoja won via second-round submission. However, since then, Moreno has transformed into a different fighter and has become highly skilled in all aspects of MMA. Royval will watch both fighters closely to challenge them for a future title fight.
Brandon Royval was confused by the decision of Dana White to keep him in the Prelims
After destroying Matheus Nicolau at UFC on ESPN, Royval talked about his confusion to the media on why he remained a Prelim fighter for the event in Kansas City. He became the backup for the next Flyweight title fight with the victory. However, he was confused by the status of his fight in the Prelims.
He said, “I think we’re the second highest-ranked people on this whole entire card. If we’re trying to build up the flyweight division, I think putting us in the limelight would be a good idea. Especially given how much title implications this fight does have. I thought that was a little weird.”
Dana White apologised for messing up and admitted that the fight should have been a main card fight. For his victory, White has revealed that Royval will weigh in as the backup option for the Flyweight title fight at UFC 290.
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Nidhin Shibu
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