Royval vs Nicolau

Who won Royval vs Nicolau?

Brandon Royval beat Matheus Nicolau by knockout in the 1st round during the prelims of UFC Fight Night – Holloway vs. Allen, on Saturday 15th April 2023 at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Flyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 125 pounds (8.9 stone or 56.7 KG).

Royval vs Nicolau stats

Brandon Royval stepped into the octagon with a record of 14 wins, 6 losses and 0 draws, 3 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 9 by submission.

Matheus Nicolau made his way to the cage with a record of 19 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw, 5 of those wins coming by knock out and 5 by submission.

This was Brandon Royval's 10th fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2020. Matheus Nicolau marked his 11th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2015.

Brandon Royval's UFC record stood at 7-3-0, while Matheus Nicolau's came in at 7-4-0.

The stats suggested Nicolau had a slight advantage in power over Royval, with a 26% knock out percentage over Royval's 21%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Royval had a massive advantage over Nicolau, boasting a 64% submission rate over Nicolau's 26%.

Brandon Royval was the same age as Matheus Nicolau, at 32 years old.

Royval had a height advantage of 3 inches over Nicolau. That also extended to a 4-inch reach advantage.

Royval was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 2 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2012, 2 years later than Nicolau, whose first professional fight was in 2010. He had fought 1 less professional rounds, 54 to Nicolau's 55.

Royval vs Nicolau form

Brandon Royval had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Matt Schnell at UFC 274 on 7th May 2022 by submission in the 1st round at Jeunesse Arena, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Previous to that, he had beaten Rogerio Bontorin at UFC Fight Night on 15th January 2022 by split decision in their 3 round contest at UFC APEX, Las Vegas, United States.

Going into that contest, he had lost to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC Vegas 34 on 21st August 2021 by submission in the 2nd round at UFC APEX, Enterprise.

Before that, he had defeated Kai Kara France at UFC 253 on 26th September 2020 by submission in the 2nd round at UFC Fight Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

He was victorious against Nate Williams at LFA 79 on 22nd November 2019 by submission in the 1st round in their LFA Flyweight championship fight at 1STBANK Center, Broomfield, United States.

Nicolau had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going the distance 3 times.

In his last fight before this contest, he had been beaten by Brandon Royval at UFC Fight Night – Holloway vs. Allen on 15th April 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at T-Mobile Center, Kansas City, United States.

Previous to that, he had won against Matt Schnell at UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Holland on 3rd December 2022 by knockout in the 2nd round at Amway Center, Orlando.

Going into that contest, he had beaten David Dvorak at UFC Fight Night Columbus on 26th March 2022 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Nationwide Arena, Columbus.

Before that, he had defeated Tim Elliott at UFC Vegas 39 on 9th October 2021 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC APEX, Las Vegas.

He was victorious against Manel Kape at UFC Vegas 21 on 13th March 2021 by split decision in their 3 round contest at UFC APEX, Las Vegas.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Matheus Nicolau had been fighting more than Brandon Royval.

Going to this contest, Brandon Royval had last fought 3 years, 1 month and 20 days ago, while Matheus Nicolau's last outing had been 2 years, 2 months and 12 days ago.

Royval's last 5 fights had come over a period of 5 years, 7 months and 5 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 1 year, 1 month and 12 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 9 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.8 rounds on average.

Nicolau's last 5 fights had come over a period of 4 years, 3 months and 14 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 10 months and 9 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 12 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.4 rounds on average.

What were the odds on Royval vs Nicolau?

Brandon Royval was a 17/10 (+170) underdog going into the contest, while Matheus Nicolau made his way into the ring at 12/25 (-210) with oddsmakers.