Brandon Royval admits he accepted UFC Mexico City backup spot for free vacation: “For sure I want that!”

UFC flyweight Brandon Royval wasn’t really expecting to fight Brandon Moreno this Saturday night.

‘Raw Dawg’ is fresh off a title shot against Alexandre Pantoja in December at UFC 296 in December. The bout took place over two years after their first bout, which saw ‘The Cannibal’ win by second-round submission. While Brandon Royval put forth a better performance last year, he still suffered a unanimous decision loss.

Just a few weeks after that bout, Brandon Royval accepted the backup role for UFC Mexico City. In the main event, ‘The Assassin Baby’ was expected to face Amir Albazi in a flyweight title eliminator. Royval accepted the backup offer, mainly to travel to Mexico for a vacation. Instead, he will be fighting Moreno later this week.

Brandon Royval discussed the situation at UFC Mexico City media day earlier today. There, the flyweight contender opened up about accepting the backup role. Given the enormity of the contest itself, he didn’t see a way that either Brandon Moreno or Amir Albazi would withdraw from it. Instead, ‘The Prince’ pulled out a day after Royval accepted the backup offer.

However, he’s still prepared to fight this Saturday night. With a potential trilogy with Alexandre Pantoja on the line, Royval is ready to prove that he’s still a top contender at 125 pounds. Unfortunately, he is missing out on a bit of vacation time though.

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Brandon Royval opens up on accepting UFC Mexico City backup offer

“Alright, I’m sitting at home.” Brandon Royval stated at UFC Mexico City media day, telling the story of how he got the offer to fight Brandon Moreno. “This was three weeks after the [Alexandre] Pantoja fight, maybe four weeks after the Pantoja fight. I was sitting at home and the holidays happened or whatever, I’m a little fat. I get a call and they’re like ‘You want to be the backup fighter?’”

He continued, “I was like, there’s no way, nobody is going to pull out of that fight. Free vacation to Mexico City? For sure I want that. So I took that fight, and within [a day] 18 hours later I get a call. ‘Well, you’re in’. I was like, ‘I’m in what?’ They’re like, ‘You’re fighting Moreno in Mexico City’. Like, oh s*it alright, cool!”

While Brandon Royval is excited about the short-notice fight, he’s already suffered a loss to Brandon Moreno before. At UFC 255 in November 2020, ‘Raw Dawg’ suffered a first-round stoppage loss to the Mexican fighter in a title eliminator. Nearly four years later, Royval gets the chance to avenge his defeat to ‘The Assassin Baby’.

What do you make of these comments? Are you excited for UFC Mexico City? Who do you have winning in the main event? Brandon Royval or Brandon Moreno?