Brandon Royval revealed this week that he has pulled out of his upcoming matchup against fellow flyweight contender Manel Kape due to injury. 32-year-old Royval (17-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) had been sceduled to face Kape (20-7 MMA, 6-3 UFC) in the main event of the UFC Fight Night event which takes place at the UFC Apex on March 1st, but he announced via a social media post that the bout is no longer taking place.
"Unfortunately I'm going to have to pull out of my fight", stated "Raw Dawg" in a post on Instagram on Wednesday. "I'm sorry to Manel Kape and my fans. I'm facing an injury that has me questioning when I'll be able to train again.
"This is absolutely a fight I think needs to happen for the flyweight division", he continued, "but as of right now competing has been ill advised. Love y'all and i apologize from the bottom of my heart. I'll have more details on my YouTube this week".
With flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja reported to be facing Kai Kara-France at UFC 314 in April, it had been rumored that the winner of Royval vs. Kape would be next in line for a crack at the 125 lb title.
Royval's only defeat in his last 6 outings came against the champion at UFC 296 late in 2023, the second time in his career he came up short against Pantoja. Royval bounced back to win two fights last year against former champion Brandon Moreno and Japanese star Tatsuro Taira and with Pantoja having effectively cleared out the flyweight division, a third matchup between the pair may well have been on the cards.
It's unclear as of yet if a new opponent will be found for Manel Kape, or if the event will have new main event entirely. "Starboy" has won 5 of his last 6 fights inside the Octagon, but Royval's withdrawal means the Angolan flyweight has now had ten cancelled bouts since signing with the UFC back in 2020.
