Brandon Royval before UFC 317: 'I'm the most disrespected fighter in the UFC'
Despite Royval (17-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) having several wins on his record that exceed anything Van (14-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) has achieved, he is currently not the betting favorite against the 23-year-old, who just fought and won at UFC 316 on June 7 and steps in as a late-notice replacement for the injured Manel Kape.
It's a familiar situation for Royval, and he said he's not bothered by it going into Saturday's flyweight main card bout at T-Mobile Arena (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
"I'm not surprised at all," Royval told MMA Junkie and other reporters at UFC 317 media day. "I think honestly I'm the most disrespected fighter in the UFC. I think it's been shown over and over again. Any time a money line comes out, I think I've been a favorite against Matt Schnell and never again in the UFC. My whole entire career it's been that way. Nothing is different, but I feel like I get continuously disrespected by the fans and whoever the oddsmakers are. But it doesn't matter. Any time I win a fight something comes up."
Whether he gets his respect or not, it doesn't change the mission statement for Royval. He wants a second shot at the UFC flyweight title after falling short against Alexandre Pantoja in his first chance in December 2023. It would be a good time to deliver a strong performance, because Pantoja co-headlines UFC 317 against Kai Kara-France.
It's currently the expectation of Royval that if he wins in the manner he wants, he will be fighting the winner of the title bout.
"That's what I'm hearing and telling you guys right now: If I make a statement, I go get a title shot," Royval said. "Same thing with Joshua Van. We go make statements. We're both the most exciting fighters in this division. We go put on an exciting fight, which is going to happen no matter what, one of us is up next for the belt."
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