Brandon Royval knows what itās like to be a hungry challenger.
The flyweight veteran scraped and clawed his way to a UFC title shot, falling just short of the gold with a decision loss to Alexandre Pantoja this past December. A razor-thin win over two-time champion Brandon Moreno nudged Royval closer to a rematch, but thereās still work to be done if he wants another crack at it and that means beating the undefeated Tatsuro Taira this Saturday in the main event of UFC Vegas 98.
In this āwhat have you done for me lately?ā business, Taira has the opportunity to steal Royvalās spotācurrently tied for No. 2 in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, well ahead of Taira at No. 8āand leap right into the title picture. Which is not to say Taira wonāt have earned it as heās currently 16-0 with six wins in the UFC. Oh, and he doesnāt turn 25 until January.
Pantoja should watch this headliner closely because he could be scouting his next challenger.
In other main card action, Brad Tavares makes his 25th UFC appearance, a record in the middleweight division, Chidi Njokuani continues to test the welterweight waters, Grant Dawson looks to move closer to the lightweight top 15, welterweight veterans Daniel Rodriguez and Alex Morono square off, and Abdul Razak Alhassan targets a fast finish against Josh Fremd.
What: UFC Vegas 98
Where: UFC APEX in Las Vegas
When: Saturday, Oct. 12. The seven-fight preliminary card begins at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN+, followed by a five-fight main card at 7 p.m. ET also on ESPN+.
Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira
Itās scary the rate at which Tatsuro Taira is evolving and thatās why I like his chances against Brandon Royval.
Make no mistake, this is the biggest test for Taira yet. The Japanese wunderkind looked good against Alex Perez before a grappling exchange that Taira controlled resulted in Perez blowing out his knee, but outside of that heās yet to perform against the best that flyweight has to offer. Heās clearly the class of his tier, but how will that translate against an opponent that just went 25 minutes in a title fight eight months ago?
When Royval fights to his potential, heās as good as anyone at 125 pounds. What he struggles with is finding the right balance between his natural aggression and employing a more technical gameplan, which can lead to mixed results. Heās far more battle-tested than Taira though, an important factor to consider when a young fighter is being asked to take a step up in competition.
The name of the game for Taira should be working for takedowns, and rinsing and repeating that strategy until heās frustrated Royval into submission. Taira has shown he can strike, but he wonāt want to mess with Royvalās unpredictable power if he can help it. Itās time for Taira to show his all-around skills are worthy of a title opportunity.
Weāre swinging big here and picking Taira to beat Royval via submission in Round 2.
Pick: Taira
Brad Tavares vs. Jun Yong Park
Itās the middleweight divisionās Iron Man vs. āThe Iron Turtle.ā
No middleweight has made more UFC appearances than Brad Tavares, who has been with the organization since 2010. Heās the ultimate gamer, having lost to several elite names while still stringing together enough wins to keep himself employed. He wonāt be intimidated in the slightest by Jun Yong Park.
This will be a back-and-forth battle for three rounds, neither fighter likely to connect with a telling blow that lets the judges toss their scorecards. Park has shown flashes of a spot in the rankings, but hasnāt done enough to cross that threshold just yet. To beat Tavares, he has to top the output of a veteran known for his non-stop activity.
When it comes to battles of attrition, Tavares often finds a way to do just enough to sway the scoring in his favor and I expect that to be the case Saturday as well. He times his entries to counter Parkās effective jab game, stuffs any takedown attempts, and outpoints Park to take a unanimous decision.
Pick: Tavares
Chidi Njokuani vs. Jared Gooden
Jared Gooden couldnāt have picked a worse time to miss weight.
In case you havenāt noticed, the latest season of Dana Whiteās Contender Series is wrapping soon and that means a little fall house-cleaning, as it were. So the last thing you want to be doing is messing around on the scale, especially when you donāt have the most spotless record.
Gooden is 1-1 in his second UFC stint (2-4 overall) and given this is the third time heās missed weight in the promotion, thereās no nice way to put it: heās fighting to stay on the roster here. That worst-case scenario could motivate him to a career-best performance when the bell rings, but the fact he missed weight in the first place should raise concerns as to his level of preparation.
His opponent Chidi Njokuani was once known for his inability to cut down to 170 pounds, but he made that weight for his most recent fight with Rhys McKee and following that split decision win heās looking to prove he deserves bigger fights. His speed and striking have always made him an intriguing talent and as he approaches his 36th birthday, itās now or never for him.
For now, he should handily out-strike Gooden and foil his attempts to take the fight to the ground. A focused Njokuani should end this via knockout in the first or second round.
Pick: Njokuani
Grant Dawson vs. Rafa Garcia
Listed generously at 5-foot-7, Rafa Garcia is used to being the low man whenever he enters the octagon, so Iām curious to see how he deals with the brawny Grant Dawson.
Garcia is strong as an ox and loves to throw looping hooks en route takedown attempts. Heās in tough against Dawson, a fellow grappler that will be tough to outwrestle. Itās entirely possible they neutralize each otherās wrestling, resulting in a standup battle I think Dawson wins.
True, we havenāt seen much of Dawson on the feet and what he have seen has been a work in progress, but he strikes me as someone who is still developing his striking, not someone who is incapable of it. His size and strengthāand the harsh lessons learned in his loss to Bobby Greenāshould give him the advantage here. If Dawson can sprinkle in a few takedowns, all the better.
Garcia will make him work for it, but Dawson by decision.
Pick: Dawson
Daniel Rodriguez vs. Alex Morono
As mentioned above, the UFC is in a cutting mood, so letās hope that doesnāt spell doom for the loser of Daniel Rodriguez vs. Alex Morono. Even though neither fighter is ever likely to compete for a world title, they still have a lot to offer.
Theyāll get to show it in this matchup of two strikers, Rodriguez better known for his crafty and technical style, and Morono more prone to timely bursts of action. Neither man is likely to come out guns blazing, so expect this to come off as a high-level sparring match with a little blood sprinkled in. Thatās the best you can ask for with these APEX cards, sometimes.
When heās on, Rodriguez looks like a top-15 welterweight. I like his chances of channeling some of his prime form against Morono. Itās Rodriguezās fight to lose and I see him winning the majority of exchanges over the course of three rounds to take a comfortable, if uneventful decision.
Pick: Rodriguez
Preliminaries
Ramazan Temirov def. CJ Vergara
Pat Sabatini def. Jonathan Pearce
Themba Gorimbo def. Niko Price
Cory McKenna def. Julia Polastri
Sean Sharaf def. Junior Tafa
Cody Haddon def. Dan Argueta
Lucas Rocha def. Clayton Carpenter
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