A potential title eliminator is now scheduled for UFC 317.
This year`s International Fight Week event is set to feature two championship bouts. On June 28th, Ilia Topuria and Charles Oliveira are expected to compete for the vacant lightweight championship. In the co-main event, flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja is slated to defend his title for the fourth time against Kai Kara-France.
The UFC 317 undercard faced a setback weeks before the event when it was announced that Manel Kape suffered an injury and had to pull out of his flyweight fight against the number one contender, Brandon Royval.
The UFC appears to have found Kape`s replacement over the recent weekend at UFC 316.
Brandon Royval says he’s fighting Joshua Van at UFC 317
The 23-year-old flyweight, Joshua Van, is among the most consistently active fighters on the UFC roster, having competed five times in the last eleven months.
Van secured his fourth consecutive win at UFC 316 on Saturday by defeating the #12-ranked contender Bruno Silva via TKO in the third round. Van will make a quick turnaround, fighting Brandon Royval at UFC 317 on June 28th, just three weeks later.
“Manel Kape is out. Joshua Van is stepping in,” Royval confirmed via his Instagram on Monday.
“I have zero idea on the extent of Manel Kape’s injuries, but I do know that I have the hottest prospect and probably the most exciting UFC flyweight in front of me.
“Nothing changes for me as far as like what’s in front of me. I got a gangster that’s ready to take my head off and earn his name off of me…
“So, I appreciate the matchup, and then also just excited to f—— be in what I think is probably the most exciting matchup in the flyweight division and be aligned on the same flyweight title card as Pantoja and Kai Kara-France.”
Former title challenger Royval is coming off consecutive victories against Brandon Moreno and Tatsuro Taira and could potentially be just one win away from securing another shot at the title.
Dana White loves Joshua Van’s attitude when it comes to fighting
Before taking his sixth fight in eleven months, `The Fearless` Van stated after his most recent win that he wants to compete as many times as possible.
This kind of attitude is exactly what UFC CEO Dana White likes to hear.
“Anybody who talks like that and says I wanna fight as many times this year, it’s the greatest thing you can do for yourself,” White commented about Van at the UFC 316 post-fight press conference.
“When you look at the old time fighters in boxing, some of those guys used to fight every weekend.
“So, when that is your mentality and if you can win, I mean, look at Khamzat [Chimaev] when we were in Fight Island. He’s like, ‘I wanna fight again next weekend…’
“I love it,” White concluded, expressing his appreciation for Van’s mindset.
Rupert Hartwell