Joshua Van: A Win Over Brandon Royval At UFC 317 Puts Me At No. 1
The news that Royval had lost his original opponent for UFC 317, which takes place on June 28 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, broke earlier this week when Kape revealed he suffered a broken foot during training. Royval was the one who informed fight fans that Van was stepping in on short notice as a replacement.
Van was fresh off a TKO win over veteran UFC competitor Bruno Silva when he accepted the Royval fight. The Silva stoppage at UFC 316 gave Van a four-fight winning streak and moved him to the No. 10 spot in the official UFC 125-pound rankings.
After his win at UFC 316, Van called for a fight against former UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno, who is ranked No. 2 in the division.
'If I win this fight, I'm No. 1," Van told Ariel Helwani. "No [UFC hasn't said that], but who am I supposed to fight next? If I beat the No. 1 guy, I'm the No. 1 [guy]. So that's what I'm thinking right now.
'The only reason I called out [Brandon] Moreno [after UFC 316] was because everyone in the top 15 had a matchup and stuff like that. It was just me and him that were left, and he said he wanted to fight on Noche UFC, I want to fight in Texas. But if they give me a title [fight after UFC 317], hell yeah, I'll take the title.'
"When they called me Sunday, it's just an opportunity that I can't say no. I told the media I want to fight as soon as possible, so the UFC gave me a matchup, and I have to say yes,' Van added.
The timing of the Royval vs. Van fight is excellent. The co-main event of UFC 317 finds the flyweight title on the line, as champion Alexandre Pantoja faces Kai Kara-France in that matchup. The winner of the Royval vs. Van fight, which is currently booked for the UFC 317 prelims, could determine who faces the winner of that Pantoja vs. Kara-France matchup.
Van spoke about that fight.
"Kai is a very powerful guy. So I feel like if Kai doesn't show him too much respect, I think he can get it done," Van said. "But if Pantoja bullies him in there, it's done. It's over.
'It would be ideal if I fight Pantoja because nobody's ever beaten him as the champion. So if I go out there and beat him, that would be [great]. May the best man win.'
Royval faced Pantoja in a title fight in December 2023. Pantoja won that contest by decision. The two also faced each other in a non-title bout in August 2021. Pantoja earned a submission win in that scrap.
Royval has a September 2020 submission win over Kara-France.
We will have more on Royval vs. Van and the UFC 317 fight card as fight night approaches.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
a minute ago
- Washington Post
Rodgers, Heyward, Watt and Metcalf will sit out the Steelers' preseason finale
PITTSBURGH — Aaron Rodgers' first official snaps with the Pittsburgh Steelers will have to wait until Week 1. Coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday that the four-time MVP , along with All-Pro defensive tackle Cam Heyward, star outside linebacker T.J. Watt and wide receiver DK Metcalf, will not play against Carolina in Pittsburgh's preseason finale on Thursday.
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Connecticut Sun to propose new options to WNBA after league resisted sale that would relocate team to Boston: Report
After the WNBA pushed back on what would have been a record-breaking $325 million sale of the Connecticut Sun to a group led by Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca, the organization is expected to counter with multiple proposals to the league, according to a Tuesday report from ESPN's Alexa Philippou and Ramona Shelburne. Pagliuca reportedly intended to buy the Sun and, as early as 2027, relocate the team to Boston, where it has already sold out TD Garden for select games two years in a row. But the W took issue with the potential transaction. The league office stated that the WNBA's board of governors makes relocation decisions, not individual teams. Also, since Boston didn't submit an expansion bid over the past three years, it doesn't have priority over interested cities that have already gone through the expansion process, according to the league, ESPN reported. Per ESPN's report, this frustrated the Mohegan tribe, which has owned the Sun since it purchased the Orlando Miracle after the 2002 season, rebranded the team and moved it to Uncasville, Connecticut. The tribe, according to ESPN sources, believes the W is trying to control how much the team is sold for and where it will be moved, whereas the tribe wants to maximize the franchise's value, just as it would in the sale to Pagliuca's group. After all, a professional women's team has never sold for as much as $325 million before. Prior to that bid being reported on Aug. 2, though, the WNBA offered to purchase the Sun for $250 million and not charge the new buyer an additional relocation fee, per ESPN, which explained that such an arrangement would allow the league to essentially hand the team off to one of its preferred expansion cities. The tribe, the W's first non-NBA owner, would like to keep the Sun in New England. Meanwhile, the WNBA would eventually consider a Boston team in a later round of expansion, per the ESPN report — which includes that the league prefers new Celtics owner Bill Chisholm owning the city's WNBA franchise, too — but Boston has to first submit an expansion bid in that seemingly separate timeline. In the meantime, the Mohegan tribe is proposing sale options to the league that reportedly include a full sale to Pagliuca's group; a sale to a group spearheaded by former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, who would move the Sun to Hartford, Connecticut, per ESPN; a sale of only minority stake in the franchise; or a sale to the league but for the record-breaking $325 million.
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Connecticut Sun to propose new options to WNBA after league resisted $325 million, Boston-based sale: Report
After the WNBA pushed back on what would have been a record-breaking $325 million sale of the Connecticut Sun to a group led by Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca, the organization is expected to counter with multiple proposals to the league, according to a Tuesday report from ESPN's Alexa Philippou and Ramona Shelburne. Pagliuca reportedly intended to buy the Sun and, as early as 2027, relocate the team to Boston, where it has already sold out TD Garden for select games two years in a row. But the W took issue with the potential transaction. The league office stated that the WNBA's board of governors makes relocation decisions, not individual teams. Also, since Boston didn't submit an expansion bid over the past three years, it doesn't have priority over interested cities that have already gone through the expansion process, according to the league, ESPN reported. Per ESPN's report, this frustrated the Mohegan tribe, which has owned the Sun since it purchased the Orlando Miracle after the 2002 season, rebranded the team and moved it to Uncasville, Connecticut. The tribe, according to ESPN sources, believes the W is trying to control how much the team is sold for and where it will be moved, whereas the tribe wants to maximize the franchise's value, just as it would in the sale to Pagliuca's group. After all, a professional women's team has never sold for as much as $325 million before. Prior to that bid being reported on Aug. 2, though, the WNBA offered to purchase the Sun for $250 million and not charge the new buyer an additional relocation fee, per ESPN, which explained that such an arrangement would allow the league to essentially hand the team off to one of its preferred expansion cities. The tribe, the W's first non-NBA owner, would like to keep the Sun in New England. Meanwhile, the WNBA would eventually consider a Boston team in a later round of expansion, per the ESPN report — which includes that the league prefers new Celtics owner Bill Chisholm owning the city's WNBA franchise, too — but Boston has to first submit an expansion bid in that seemingly separate timeline. In the meantime, the Mohegan tribe is proposing sale options to the league that reportedly include a full sale to Pagliuca's group; a sale to a group spearheaded by former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, who would move the Sun to Hartford, Connecticut, per ESPN; a sale of only minority stake in the franchise; or a sale to the league but for the record-breaking $325 million.
