Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is just one day away from the upcoming UFC Vegas 112 mixed martial arts (MMA) event, which is set to go down tomorrow night (Sat., Dec. 13, 2025) on ESPN2 and ESPN+
from inside APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC Vegas 112 features a flyweight main event between 125-pound standouts Brandon Royval and Manel Kape, a five-round showdown with possible title implications for early 2026 and beyond.
Before we dive into the main and co-main events, which include the featherweight collision between No. 15-ranked Giga Chikadze and once-beaten Argentinian standout Kevin Vallejos, check out Andrew Richardson’s “X-Factor” breakdown for the rest of the UFC Vegas 112 main card by clicking here. Get all the latest “Royval vs. Kape” odds and betting props courtesy of FanDuel right here.
125 lbs.: Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape
Brandon “Raw Dog” Royval
Record: 17-8 | Age: 33 | Betting line: +245
Wins: 4 KO/TKO, 9 SUB, 4 DEC | Losses: 1 KO/TKO, 1 SUB, 6 DEC
Height: 5’9” | Reach: 68” | Stance: Southpaw
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 5.55 | Striking accuracy: 41%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 4.23 | Striking Defense: 43%
Takedown Average: 0.67 (75% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 45%
Current Ranking: No. 3 | Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to Joshua Van
Manel “Starboy” Kape
Record: 21-7 | Age: 32 | Betting line: -305
Wins: 13 KO/TKO, 5 SUB, 3 DEC | Losses: 0 KO/TKO, 2 SUB, 5 DEC
Height: 5’5“ | Reach: 66” | Stance: Southpaw
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 5.04 | Striking accuracy: 55%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 4.05 | Striking Defense: 57%
Takedown Average: 0.42 (30% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 81%
Current Ranking: No. 6 | Last fight: Technical knockout win over Asu Almabayev
Brandon Royval has been fighting under the UFC banner for more than five years but didn’t get off to the best start, dropping two of his first four fights inside the Octagon. To be fair, “Raw Dog” also had to contend with future champions Brandon Moreno and Alexandre Pantoja right out of the gate, so there was a steep learning curve for the former Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) headliner. Royval would go on to avenge his loss to Moreno (but not Pantoja) during a 5-2 run, spoiling the rise of flyweight wunderkind Tatsuro Taira along the way. Unfortunately for Royval, Joshua Van did some spoiling of his own, defeating the Coloradan by way of unanimous decision at UFC 317 back in June. Despite the setback, “Raw Dog” remains ranked at No. 3 in the 125-pound rankings and has proven to be a tough day at the office for any contending flyweight.
“I just want to walk him down. I just want to get in his face and put a leash on him and dog walk his ass all around that cage,” Royval told reporters at the UFC Vegas 112 media day. “My goal for 2026 is get back into title contention, whoop some ass, show the world what I really am and make some money and get a belt. I want to bring the belt back to Denver. I think I’m just more skilled than everybody in this division and Saturday will be a sick time to show it. think I can sit real pretty if I do some cool sh*t on Saturday.”
Manel Kape landed in UFC shortly after Royval and brought the hype of his RIZIN success into a talent-starved division. Much like “Raw Dog” before him, Kape got off to a rough start, dropping his first two UFC fights to Alexandre Pantoja and Matheus Nicolau by way of decision. “Starboy” was able to right the ship with a first-round knockout victory over Ode Osbourne, part of a 6-1 run with four finishes. There’s no denying Kape is talented, but there’s also no denying he’s unreliable, repeatedly missing weight and coming up injured at the worst possible time. It stands to reason that his absenteeism helped clear a path for Joshua Van but even with a victory 0ver Royval, Kape will have competition from the resurgent Tatsuro Taira, as well as Pantoja — who may be looking at an immediate rematch against the “Fearless” flyweight champion.
“Let’s look in the way: Brandon Royval beat Brandon Moreno. Brandon Royval beat Tatsuro Taira. He beat him. He didn’t just win, he beat him,” Kape told reporters at the UFC Vegas 112 media day. “Me, Saturday night, I’ll make Brandon Royval look easy, style on him, stop him. What can they deny me for? They cannot deny. He beat the contender fighter, and I just beat the guy that beat you guys. So there is no more questions. There is no more talk, and I’m just going to prove that I’m the man. I’m the fighter with the best style to be a champion. I’m the fighter that this division needs.”
Kape is more dynamic and easily the more explosive fighter, but Royval is resilient and has that Nate Diaz ability to wear down opponents and make them tired. Neither fighter is particularly concerned with wrestling so I don’t expect to see much of it tomorrow night in Vegas, I just don’t know if Royval will have enough time to get it done. In a five-round fight I’m more likely to side with “Raw Dog” but with only 15 minutes to work, I think the judges will be more impressed by Kape’s activity and aggressive offense — assuming Royval doesn’t sneak in a choke before then.
Prediction: Kape def. Royval by decision
155 lbs.: Giga Chikadze vs. Kevin Vallejos
Giga “Ninja” Chikadze
Record: 15-5 | Age: 37 | Betting line: +230
Wins: 9 KO/TKO, 1 SUB, 5 DEC | Losses: 0 KO/TKO, 1 SUB, 4 DEC
Height: 6’0“ | Reach: 74” | Stance: Orthodox
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 3.82 | Striking accuracy: 42%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 3.48 | Striking Defense: 60%
Takedown Average: 0.19 (33% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 65%
Current Ranking: No. 15 | Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to David Onama
Kevin “El Chino” Vallejos
Record: 16-1 | Age: 24 | Betting line: -285
Wins: 11 KO/TKO, 2 SUB, 3 DEC | Losses: 0 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 1 DEC
Height: 5’7“ | Reach: 68” | Stance: Switch
Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 6.28 | Striking accuracy: 45%
Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 5.23 | Striking Defense: 57%
Takedown Average: 0.84 (33% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 83%
Current Ranking: Unranked | Last fight: Unanimous decision win over Danny Silva
Giga Chikadze was first introduced to UFC fans by way of Dana White’s “Contender Series” back in June 2018, where he was promptly choked out by Austin Springer and sent back down to the regional circuit. To his credit, “Ninja” racked up a pair of wins — and first-round finishes — for Gladiator Challenge and quickly got called back to UFC. He made the most of his second chance, firing off seven straight victories and finishing off well-traveled veterans Edson Barbosa and Cub Swanson. I think that run of success went to his head because he started calling himself “the best striker inside the whole martial arts world” and compared himself to The Matrix. Maybe he ran into a few Agents after those wins because the Georgian would go on to lose three of his next four and is currently coming off back-to-back losses to Arnold Allen and David Onama. At age 37, Chikadze is running out of time to make a serious run at the 145-pound title and needs a big performance this weekend in “Sin City.”
“He’s an upcoming fighter,” Chikadze told reporters at the UFC Vegas 112 media day. “I don’t think he’s ready for the level that I’m at. But I guess Saturday we’re going to see it and I’m going to send him back to kindergarten to come back later and better. He’s young. He has a lot of career in the future. But right now, all of my experience puts me in this position. We’ve got to plan for next year to do the big things. First thing’s first: take care of the business Saturday and then we’re back home. I know I’m a championship-level fighter. I have to do some stuff to become a champion. He mentioned that he’s more than ready and happy to trade. We’ll see on that. That’s what everybody says.”
Kevin Vallejos also faltered in his first attempt to secure a UFC contract after losing a decision to Jean Silva on Dana White’s “Contender Series” in fall of 2023 — when he was just 21 years old. Back-to-back victories for Samurai Fight House (SFH) would earn him another shot on the “Contender Series” show the following year and Vallejos made the most of it, obliterating Cam Teague inside the opening frame. “El Chino,” who turned 24 earlier this week, has already bagged a pair of wins under the UFC banner, crushing Seung Woo Choi at UFC Vegas 104 before outpointing Danny Silva at UFC Vegas 108. Vallejos lands nearly twice the significant strikes per minute compared to Chikadze but does give up several inches in both height and reach. Bookies have the Argentinian pegged as a considerable betting favorite despite his lack of experience against the bigger names in the division, likely based on the age and apparent deterioration of Chikadze.
“This is a great opportunity to fight a fighter that has been in the rankings for quite some time, as experienced as Giga Chikadze,” Vallejos told UFC.com. “Think about it: I was nothing before and here I am fighting a guy that has been in the rankings. This is an opportunity that I do not plan on missing out on, a very good opportunity to fight a guy that brings so much to the table. At the end of the day, I don’t have a rush to get into the title picture; I think of it step-by-step. I think about continuing to evolve and having that chance to have a rematch against Jean Silva. I do believe at one point, he’ll get that belt and we’ll face each other, and it should be for the belt in the future.”
This will undoubtedly prove to be an all-striking exchange between combatants who combined for 20 knockouts across their respective careers, nine for Chikadze and 11 for Vallejos. I don’t want to jump on the “El Chino” bandwagon simply because he’s young and flashy; but at the same time, what have we seen from Chikadze in his last couple of fights that should have us feeling confident enough to pick him? The answer is nothing, so we’ll stick with that old Japanese proverb that says experience should fear the strength of youth.
Prediction: Vallejos def. Chikadze by technical knockout
Don’t forget to check out the rest of the UFC Vegas 112 main card predictions RIGHT HERE.
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