A pivotal UFC flyweight clash will go down in August.
Alexandre Pantoja will face Brandon Royval at a UFC Fight Night event on Aug 21 at an event which doesn’t currently have an announced location, venue or broadcast plan.
Two people with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the booking between Pantoja (23-5 MMA, 7-3 UFC) and Royval (12-5 MMA, 2-1 UFC) to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous because the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Pantoja will look to string consecutive victories for the first time since April 2019. The Brazilian contender has split his past four octagon appearances, most recently defeating highly touted former Rizin FF champion Manel Kape at UFC Fight Night 184 in February.
Royval has fought stiff competition ever since joining the UFC roster in May 2020. After back-to-back “Fight of the Night” submission wins over Tim Elliott and Kai Kara-France, the 28-year-old Factory X fighter lost a No. 1 contender bout to Brandon Moreno, when he was stopped in the first round via TKO at UFC 255.
With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for Aug. 21 includes:
- Fabio Cherant vs. William Knight
- Austin Hubbard vs. Vinc Pichel
- Alexandre Pantoja vs. Brandon Royval