Brandon Royval held on to his top contender spot. And now he wants what’s his.

“Raw Dawg” made it two straight wins on Saturday with a thrilling split decision victory over Tatsuro Taira in the main event of UFC Vegas 98. The top-10 flyweights went back and forth for 25 minutes, with the more experienced Royval gutting out the victory.

Since losing to UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja in February, Royval has scored wins over the previously unbeaten Taira and two-time titleholder Brandon Moreno, so another championship opportunity is within reach. Should Royval grasp it, he vows to put on a more spirited effort this time around.

“I’m going balls to the wall,” Royval said at the evening’s post-fight press conference. “I trust my pace, I trust my cardio. A fifth-round Raw Dawg is a dangerous Raw Dawg. I trust myself. I think if I ever fought Pantoja again—maybe I shouldn’t be telling my secrets—but I’m going straight after him. I think I played it too safe, I was a little too worried. That being said, I’m going forward, I’m going guns a blazing and that’s what I’m going to do.”

When Royval fought Pantoja eight months ago, he came out on the wrong end of a unanimous decision following a fight in which he was uncharacteristically timid. Prior to that fight, Royval was known for his intensity and aggression, scoring 12 of his first 16 wins by knockout or submission and earning three Fight of the Night bonuses (he collected another Saturday for his fight with Taira).

Royval is also known for fighting only the best competition, having shared the octagon with ranked opposition since making his UFC debut in 2020. Add it all up and he doesn’t see how the matchmakers can deny him another shot at gold.

“I see a title shot next, there’s no way about it,” Royval said. “I have a win over the whole top 5 of the division. I’m all about rematches, but that being said, I earned my way to a title shot. I took a short-notice against the No. 1, I just took out the hottest prospect in the division, I think a title shot is what’s next for me and I’ll be the backup for the title fight Dec. 7.”

That Dec. 7 title fight features Pantoja defending his flyweight championship against UFC newcomer Kai Asakura in the co-main event of UFC 310. The Japanese star made a name for himself in his native country’s RIZIN promotion and holds notable wins over Kyoji Horiguchi, Manel Kape (who avenged his loss to Asakura in 2019) and, most recently, Bellator standout Juan Archuleta.

Royval is a fan and thinks Asakura has a chance of dethroning Pantoja, but he won’t be surprised if Pantoja retains and ends up fighting Royval a third time.

“I’ve been watching Kai Asakura for a while,” Royval said. “I think he’s sick. I think there’s a lot of cool things. He’s yet to make flyweight, so I’ll be there and I’ll be ready just in case he doesn’t. That being said, I’ll give that man his roses. I think that he brings a lot of excitement to the division, I think he could take out Pantoja. I think if Pantoja grapples him at all, it’s going to be over. That being said, the fight starts on the feet.”

Eilidh Adams scored a hat-trick as Hibernian beat Spartans 4-0 to move within three points of second place in the SWPL.

Penalties bookended Adams’ treble, with her second coming from open play and Michaela McAlonie scoring Hibs’ third of the day.

At Links Park, Montrose led Partick Thistle through Neve Guthrie’s goal before Carla Boyce brought the visitors level to secure a 1-1 draw.

There are three more fixtures on Sunday – Queen’s Park v Aberdeen (15:00), Motherwell v Dundee United (16:00) and Hearts v Celtic (16:10). Hearts’ meeting with Celtic is live on BBC Alba and iPlayer.

On Saturday, leaders Rangers recovered from a goal down to draw 1-1 at home to Glasgow City to stay top of the division. Rio Hardy netted for Rangers after Emily Whelan’s opener for second-placed City.

Matt Payne took provisional pole position for the Bathurst 1000 after a qualifying session of fine margins at Mount Panorama.

Payne and his Grove Racing Ford streaked around the 6.213km circuit in a time of 2m05.6452s to edge out fellow Mustang pilot Cameron Waters by a scant 0.0060s.

“It just seemed to hook up really nicely and it just seemed to turn really well at ‘The Grate’,” he explained after the lap.

“The previous practice we did not have such a good run on green tyres. I knew the car was better than that. I knew we were going to be in the top five, but P1 is pretty cool.”

Waters, who nearly had a crash at Forrest’s Elbow during the session, revealed he had also suffered a reliability scare in the early stages.

“It was a pretty intense session, I had an engine problem to start with and that cleared,” he said.

“Everyone is trying so hard, even in practice one, it was crazy how fast everyone was going. I am just lucky I am not one of the ones crashing.”

The session featured a pair of red flags, with the first coming with 23 minutes remaining on the clock as David Reynolds lost control of the rear of his Team18 Chevrolet Camaro at The Dipper, collecting the wall where team-mate Warren Luff had performed a miraculous escape earlier in the weekend.

Will Davison, Dick Johnson Racing Ford Mustang GT

Photo by: Edge Photographics

The second came due to a crash at the same corner after Shell V-Power Racing driver Will Davison destroyed all four corners of his Ford Mustang on his final push. 

This crash ruined Broc Feeney’s attempt to top the session, although he remained the highest-placed Chevrolet driver in third. Prior to the red flags being displayed, he had been 0.25s up on Payne’s benchmark.

The Triple Eight man was 0.0081s faster than 2023 polesitter Brodie Kostecki, who set the fourth fastest time and clattered the wall at Sulman Park, requiring a mid-session suspension change which cost eight minutes of track time.

Highlighting how close the session was, Kostecki’s time was 0.0194s away from Payne.

Championship leader Will Brown secured his shootout position in fifth, having spent the majority of the session out of the window, while Chaz Mostert was sixth. 

Andre Heimgartner, Jack Le Broc, Anton de Pasquale and Richie Stanaway rounded out those who will contest Saturday’s shootout.

As a result of causing the red flags, both Reynolds and Davison saw their best times struck from the record, leaving them 21st and 16th respectively.

The Supercars will be back on track at 10:05am Australian Eastern Daylight Saving Time [12:05am BST], with a one-hour practice session for co-drivers only. There will be another hour’s practice at 1:10pm [3:10am BST] and the top 10 shootout is due to begin at 5:05pm [7:05am BST].

Bathurst 1000 Qualifying Result

BRITISH and Irish Lions legend Ronnie Dawson has died aged 92.

The Dubliner played in six Tests as Lions captain – a record which was later equalled by Martin Johnson.

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“Ronnie Dawson was an iconic figure in Irish and international rugby, whose impact transcended many eras,” said Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) chief executive Kevin Potts.

“He made significant impressions as a player, coach, manager and administrator for Wanderers, Leinster, the Barbarians, the British & Irish Lions, World Rugby and Ireland.

“He was a quintessential leader and leaves a lasting legacy which will never be forgotten.

“We extend our sympathies to his daughters Sandra and Jackie, his son Nigel and a very wide circle of family and friends at this sad time.”

LAS VEGAS – Brandon Royval made sure to let his intentions known.

The former UFC title challenger wants his next career move to involve UFC gold, and he feels he’s done enough to demand that from the promotion. Royval (17-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) defeated previously unbeaten prospect Tatsuro Taira (16-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) in a hard-fought split decision in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 244 at the UFC Apex.

This was his second straight win after losing to champion Alexandre Pantoja last December, and he feels he’s deserving of his next fight being for the title as well as the chance to be the official backup role for the next 125-pound championship fight.

“I see a title shot next. There’s no other way about it,” Royval told reporters following his win. “I have a win over the whole top five of the division. I’m all about rematches, but with that being said, I earned my way to a title shot. I took a short notice against the No. 1, I just took out the hottest prospect in the division. I think a title shot is what’s next for me, and I’ll be the backup for the title fight in December.”

Pantoja defends his flyweight belt against Japanese star Kai Asakura in the co-main event of UFC 310 on Dec. 7 in Las Vegas. Asakura, a former Rizin FF champion, is getting a title shot in his promotional debut.

Royval has no problem with Asakura getting the shot and, in fact, likes his addition to the UFC flyweight roster.

“I’ve been watching Kai Asakura for a while, I think he’s sick.” Royval said. “I think there’s a clot of cool things. He’s yet to make flyweight, so I’ll be there, and I’ll be ready just in case he doesn’t. That being said, I’ll give that man his roses. I think he brings a lot of excitement to the division, and I think he could take out Pantoja. If Pantoja grapples him, it’s going to be over. That being said, the fight starts on the feet.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 244.