2/25/24: Brandon Royval Earns Close Split Decision Nod Over Brandon Moreno
Also: Renan Ferreira slices through Ryan Bader in seconds
Welcome to the Sunday edition of the Knockdown Daily. Today’s issue has a report from three major events that took place yesterday: UFC in Mexico City, a “PFL vs. Bellator” card, and KSWs’ 20th-anniversary lineup.
Tomorrow’s Knockdown Daily will include a news catchup from the weekend and a preview of next week’s top events. Let’s get into the top MMA headlines from the past 24 hours.
Brandon Royval Earns Split Decision Nod Over Former Champ Brandon Moreno
Brandon Royval picked up arguably the most high-profile win of his UFC campaign thus far on Saturday night, going five rounds against former flyweight champion Brandon Moreno to earn a split decision victory.
Royval’s win headlined a UFC “Fight Night” card from Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico. The event was UFC’s first appearance in the country in five years.
Royval earned the win against Moreno in a headlining bout that resulted in three widely different scorecards. Two judges saw Royval win the fight three rounds to one, while the third thought Moreno won all but one of the rounds. And between the two judges that did see the fight go Royval’s way, they weren’t in agreement about which rounds.
Royval was the more active fighter throughout, constantly throwing a higher volume of strikes than Moreno. While he didn’t connect with the same accuracy as the former champ, Royval did out-land him overall.
The aggressive attacks from Royval picked up later in the fight, with his output roughly doubling in the fourth and fifth rounds. A consistent jab was a big part of Royval’s game plan, constantly landing with his right hand.
Moreno was a competitive opponent for Royval, generating his own moments in the fight as well. All three judges were in agreement that Moreno took the last round of the uptempo battle, and two believed that he took the first frame as well.
Royval’s performance placed him back into the win column after dropping a decision to UFC Flyweight Champion Alexandre Pantoja last year. He had a three-fight winning streak before the title loss.
Royval called for a second title bout against Pantoja following his win this weekend.
“I hear [Alexandre] Pantoja’s in the building,” Royval said in his post-fight interview. “Let’s run that s*** back.”
Saturday was also a rematch from 2020 when a shoulder injury forced Royval out of a fight against Moreno late in the first round.
Moreno, a two-time flyweight champ, was appearing in a non-championship fight for the first time since 2020. He dropped his belt last year to Pantoja in a split decision result.
Brian Ortega took back a loss in the co-main event of Saturday night, submitting Yair Rodriguez in the third round with an arm triangle choke.
Ortega pulled off a submission win over Rodriguez following two competitive rounds of stand-up exchanges by the fighters. Rodriguez had a strong start to the fight, registering a 10-8 round over Ortega in the opening frame. Ortega had complete control of the fight once he took things to the ground in the third, quickly bringing a conclusion to the fight with an arm triangle choke.
The featherweight talents previously met, although — similar to the duo in the main event — their first fight ended due to an injury.
Ortega lost a 2022 meeting against Rodriguez due to a shoulder injury that he suffered in the first round.
Ortega’s victory on Saturday will likely move him up to third place at featherweight and will get him closer to a chance at challenging UFC Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria.
Here are the quick results from Saturday night:
Main Card (10:00PM EST / 9:00PM CST) (ESPN+)
Bout 12: Brandon Royval def. Brandon Moreno via Decision, Split
Bout 11: Brian Ortega def. Yair Rodriguez via Submission, Arm Triangle Choke (RD 3, 0:58)
Bout 10: Daniel Zellhuber def. Francisco Prado via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 9: Yazmin Jauregui def. Sam Hughes via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 8: Manuel Torres def. Chris Duncan via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 1:46)
Preliminary Card (7:00PM EST / 6:00PM CST) (ESPN+)
Bout 7: Raoni Barcelos def. Cristian Quinonez via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 3, 2:04)
Bout 6: Jesus Aguilar def. Mateus Mendonca via Decision, Split
Bout 5: Edgar Chairez def. Daniel Lacerda via Submission, Triangle Choke (RD 1, 2:17)
Bout 4: Fares Ziam def. Claudio Puelles via Decision, Split
Bout 3: Ronaldo Rodriguez def. Denys Bondar via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 2, 4:59)
Bout 2: Felipe dos Santos def. Victor Altamirano via Decision, Split
Bout 1: Muhammad Naimov def. Erik Silva via TKO, Leg Injury (RD 1, 0:44)
Renan Ferreira Runs Through Ryan Bader In 21 Seconds, Sets Up Potential Francis Ngannou Fight
2023 PFL Heavyweight Champion Renan Ferreira steamrolled Bellator titleholder Ryan Bader, putting him away in just 21 seconds on Saturday night. Ferreria’s performance earned PFL a win in a “promotion vs. promotion” themed night that Bellator largely prevailed in.
The quick victory for Ferreira was the headlining spot of “PFL vs. Bellator: CHAMPS,” which went down from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ferreira connected with a two-punch combination as Bader was coming forward with his own strikes early in the first round. A right hand from the combination thrown by Ferreira dropped Bader to the canvas. Bader quickly shelled up after consuming a couple of ground and pound shots from Ferreira, forcing the referee to end the fight.
While the headlining bout was originally just expected to be for bragging rights, PFL added an extra incentive this week. Just a few days ago, it was announced that the winner of this bout would be the next MMA opponent for Francis Ngannou to face.
Ngannou signed with the PFL last year, joining an MMA promotion for the first time since his UFC title reign came to an end. He has been focused on high-profile boxing fights since 2023: He fought Tyson Fury to a split decision last year and is expected to fight Anthony Joshua in two weeks.
Ngannou was in attendance on Saturday night and witnessed Ferreira’s victory, which hypothetically has set up a match for the future.
Ferreira’s win this weekend followed up on an incredibly successful 2023 for him. He went on a three-fight run of victories last year, culminating with a PFL grand final fight against Denis Goltsov.
Bader, the Bellator heavyweight titleholder since early 2019, suffered his first loss since moving up to the weight class nearly six years ago. His loss on Saturday was not for his title, meaning he is still the top 265-pound division name representing Bellator.
The heavyweight main event was the first of two champion-versus-champion fights on the card. Bellator Middleweight Champion Johnny Eblen kept his undefeated record intact in the co-main event, surviving a rough knockdown in the second round to beat Impa Kasanganay in a split decision result.
Bellator won five of the six fights against PFL talent. This included a stoppage win by Bellator Welterweight Champion Jason Jackson against 2022 PFL season winner Ray Cooper III.
Here is a full look at the results from Saudi Arabia:
Main Card (3:00PM EST / 11:00PM AST) (PPV)
Bout 11: Renan Ferreira def. Ryan Bader via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:21) (Champion vs. Champion Heavyweight Bout)
Bout 10: Johnny Eblen def. Impa Kasanganay via Decision, Split (Champion vs. Champion Middleweight Bout)
Bout 9: Jason Jackson def. Ray Cooper III via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 0:23) (PFL vs. Bellator Catchweight 182 lbs Bout)
Bout 8: Vadim Nemkov def. Bruno Cappelozza via Submission, Arm Triangle Choke (RD 2, 2:13) (PFL vs. Bellator Heavyweight Bout)
Bout 7: Yoel Romero def. Thiago Santos via Decision, Unanimous (PFL vs. Bellator Light Heavyweight Bout)
Bout 6: AJ McKee Jr. def. Clay Collard via Submission, Armbar (RD 1, 1:10) (PFL vs. Bellator Lightweight Bout)
Preliminary Card (ESPNews / ESPN+)
Bout 5: Aaron Pico def. Henry Corrales via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:53)
Bout 4: Biaggio Ali Walsh def. Emmanuel Palacio via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 3: Claressa Shields def. Kelsey DeSantis via Decision, Split
Bout 2: Abdullah Al-Qahtani def. Edukondala Rao via TKO, Strikes (RD 3, 0:23)
Bout 1: Malik Basahel def. Vinicius Pereira (5-0) (Catchweight 129 lbs Amateur)
Rafal Haratyk Endures One-Night Tournament To Earn KSW Light Heavyweight Championship
Rafal Haratyk became the new KSW Light Heavyweight Champion on Saturday night, overcoming two different opponents to earn the vacant title. The veteran 205-pound talent won the belt through a four-man tournament that took place at KSW EPIC, a 20th-anniversary card held by the Polish promotion.
Haratyk defeated Marcin Wojcik and Damian Piwowarczyk to claim a title that was vacated last year by previous champ Ibragim Chuzhigaev.
Haratyk won the opening round of the tournament with a quick victory over Wojcik. He caught the fellow Polish fighter in the opening round with a right cross, forcing a knockdown just a few minutes into the bout. Ground and pound shots brought an end to the fight just moments later.
Then a few hours later, Haratyk returned for a tough three-round battle against finalist Piwowarczyk. After a performance that saw him primarily compete on the feet against Piwowarczyk, Haratyk walked away with a split decision win. Haratyk landed some solid shots on the feet and used ground control to have a solid final frame as well.
Haratyk was thrown into KSW’s one-night tournament after winning his promotional debut against Ivan Erslan last year. He now joins the light heavyweight title lineage, which includes Tomasz Narkun and Jan Blachowicz, who went on to claim a UFC title as well.
Piwowarczyk made it to the finals on Saturday after stopping Brazilian vet Kleber Silva earlier in the evening. A three-fight winning streak was snapped with his loss to Haratyk.
KSW EPIC featured many special attraction bouts. In the main event, former two-division champ Mamed Khalidov faced Polish boxing veteran Tomasz Adamek in a six-round boxing match. The headlining fight came to an end after the third round due to an injury that Khalidov suffered on his right hand.
Earlier in the evening, KSW Heavyweight Champion Phil De Fries faced Josh Barnett in a grappling match. The show also featured a Muay Thai fight, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu vs. Judo-themed MMA bout in gis, a “No Holds Barred” contest, and more.
Here are the quick results for the card:
Main Card (1:00PM EST / 7:00PM CET) (KSW PPV)
Bout 10: Mamed Khalidov def. Tomasz Adamek via TKO, Corner Stoppage (RD 3, 3:00) (Boxing)
Bout 9: Rafal Haratyk def. Damian Piwowarczyk via Decision, Split (KSW Light Heavyweight Championship Grand Prix Final)
Bout 8: Phil De Fries vs. Josh Barnett via Draw, Time Limit (Grappling)
Bout 7: Vaclav Silva def. Michal Krolik via Decision, Unanimous (Muay Thai)
Bout 6: Darko Stostic def. Matheus Scheffel via TKO, Strikes (RD 1) (Pride Rules MMA)
Bout 5: Rafal Haratyk def. Marcin Wojcik via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:05) (KSW Light Heavyweight Championship Grand Prix Semi-Final)
Bout 4: Damian Piwowarczyk def. Kleber Silva via TKO, Strikes (RD 1) (KSW Light Heavyweight Championship Grand Prix Semi-Final)
Bout 3: Ivan Erslan def. Bogdan Gnidko via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:54)
Bout 2: Muslim Tulshaev def. Konrad Rusinski via TKO, Kicks (RD 3, 0:32) (No Holds Barred MMA)
Bout 1: Piotr Kacprzak def. Adam Brysz via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:16) (MMA In A Gi)