A flyweight bout between contenders Brandon Royval and Manel Kape highlights the card at UFC Fight Night: Royval vs. Kape. The two were scheduled to face each other twice previously but each backed out due to injury. The tension should be high when they finally meet.
Currently No. 2 in the UFC flyweight rankings, Royval is coming off a loss to new division champ Joshua Van at UFC 317 getting swept on the scorecards. Van was a replacement in that fight after Kape pulled out due to a foot injury.
Kape enters on a 2-fight winning streak and is 6-1 in his last 7 fights. Most recently he scored a TKO over Asu Almabayev, who replaced Royval in what was the first scheduled bout between the headliners in March. Kape is listed as a -305 favorite on the UFC betting odds with Royval at +237.
UFC Fight Night Preview
A total of 13 fights are scheduled at UFC Fight Night: Royval vs. Kape, which takes place on Saturday, December 13, 2025 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, NV. The entire card will air on the networks of ESPN.
UFC Fight Night Predictions
- With both fighters reaching their mid-30s and with more than 50 fights between them, this is one of the last opportunities for Royval and Kape to potentially get a title shot and the winner will have some street cred heading into the new year with a victory over a top contender.
- Royval hasn’t shied away from tough competition leaving him with a less than glossy record of 7-4 inside the Octagon. All four losses were to current or former flyweight champions falling twice to Alexandre Pantoja and once to Joshua Van, who met just last week in a title fight.
- Royval has split bouts with former two-time division champion Brandon Moreno avenging a 2020 setback with a split decision win in February 2024.
- Kape has a tendency to be more reactive in his fights which at times leads to a low volume of attacks. That won’t be a problem against Royval, who charges like a bull using his boxing skill for offense. Kape can grapple with the best using that method as a defense to score a late round win.
- Rising featherweight star Kevin Vallejos gets a crack at a signature win taking on veteran Giga Chikadze in the penultimate fight on the card. Vallejos won his first two fights inside the Octagon after pummeling Cam Teague with a flurry of punches in the first round to win the Contender Series.
- Vallejos looks to continue his ascent in the division as a -290 UFC betting odds favorite.
- A lightweight fight between King Green and Lance Gibson was a late addition to the card. Gibson makes his UFC debut with a 9-1 record with six first round finishes.
UFC 323 Betting Tips
- Listed UFC odds suggest close fights on the entire card with Yaroslav Amosov the biggest favorite at -408 for his prelim welterweight clash with Neil Magny. Amosov enters with just one loss in 29 career fights.
- Both Morgan Charriere (-113) and Melquizael Costa (-109) are listed with negative odds for their main card featherweight bout. Between them the fighters have 45 career victories.
- Undefeated heavyweights Guilherme Pat -180 and Allen Frye +146 look to remain perfect in their UFC debuts. Pat hasn’t fought in 16 months but is a slight favorite at -180. Frye is listed at +146.
UFC Fight Night Head to Head and Key Stats
(2) Brandon Royval vs. (6) Manel Kape – Flyweight Fight
- With this fight being postponed twice it only adds to the anticipation. Both ranked contenders are looking to make a statement within the division heading into 2026.
- The No. 2 ranked contender, Royval enters with an overall record of 17-8 with 13 wins by stoppage. He’s 7-4 inside the Octagon with all his defeats to former champions Alexandre Pantoja (twice) and Brandon Moreno and current champion Joshua Van.
- After a slow start to his UFC tenure that included back-to-back losses, Kape has won six of his last seven fights, including the last two. Overall Kape is 21-7 with 13 KOs and five submissions. He boasts a 6-3 record inside the Octagon with four of his wins by stoppage.
- Both fighters were title owners in other promotions before joining UFC. Kape was the Rizin bantamweight champion and Royval held the LFA flyweight belt.
