Las Vegas – UFC® hosts its final event of 2025 at UFC APEX with an all-action flyweight main event as No. 3 ranked contender Brandon Royval goes toe-to-toe with No. 6 Manel Kape. Also on the card, No. 15 ranked featherweight contender Giga Chikadze returns to the Octagon to take on rising prospect Kevin Vallejos.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: ROYVAL vs. KAPE takes place Saturday, December 13 in Las Vegas. The prelims will be available on ESPN+ (English and Spanish) beginning at 4 p.m. PT / 7 p.m. ET and on ESPN2 which will join in progress at 6:30 p.m. PT / 9:30 p.m. ET. The main card available on ESPN2, ESPN Desportes and ESPN+ beginning at 7 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET.
UFC APEX VIP Experience packages are available via On Location, UFC’s Official VIP Experience Provider. Enjoy exclusive access with an official ticket package that includes premium seating, all-inclusive hospitality, in-seat beverage service, meet-and-greets with UFC Octagon Girls and more. Visit UFCVIP.com for more information.
Royval (17-8, fighting out of Englewood, Colo.) intends to end the year on a high note and reinsert himself into the championship conversation at 125-pounds. Among the most exciting athletes on the UFC roster, Royval owns the record for the most Fight of the Night bonuses in UFC flyweight history with five, including those earned in victorious performances over Tatsuro Taira, Matt Schnell and Kai Kara-France. He now looks to put his well-rounded skills on display against Kape and secure another signature finish.
Exciting striker Kape (21-7, fighting out of Phuket, Thailand by way of Porto, Portugal) competes in his second UFC main event in a row aiming to deliver a statement performance. Tied for the second-most knockouts in UFC flyweight history, he has entertained fans with finishes over Asu Almabayev, Zhalgas Zhumagulov and Ode’ Osbourne. Kape now seeks to break into the Top 5 of the division by taking out Royval in dominant fashion.
Chikadze (15-5, fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif.) plans to defend his spot in the rankings and prove he can still compete with the best in the world. A rangy striker with a Karate black belt, Chikadze holds notable knockout wins over Edson Barboza, Cub Swanson and Jamey Simmons. He now has his sights set on handing Vallejos his first UFC loss and turn his attention towards the top of the division.
Argentina’s Vallejos (16-1, fighting out of Buenos Aires, Argentina) makes his third Octagon appearance of 2025 focused on securing the biggest win of his young career. Still only 23 years old, Vallejos has already proven that is he a prospect to watch with victories over Danny Silva, SeungWoo Choi and Cam Teague. He now intends to become the first person to knockout Chikadze and launch himself into the featherweight rankings.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- An intriguing welterweight bout sees veteran Neil Magny (31-14, fighting out of Denver, Colo.) look to spoil the anticipated UFC debut of Yaroslav Amosav (28-1, fighting out of Kiev, Ukraine)
- No. 5 ranked strawweight contender Amanda Lemos (15-5-1, fighting out of Para, Brazil) aims to defend her spot in the rankings against No. 10 Gillian Robertson (16-8, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.)
- Kennedy Nzechukwu (14-6, fighting out of Dallas, Texas) faces Marcus Buchecha (5-2, fighting out of Boca Raton, Fla.) in a heavyweight contest
- An exciting featherweight tilt pits Joanderson Brito (17-5-1, fighting out of Sao Paulo, Brazil) against Melsik Baghdasaryan (8-3, fighting out of Glendale, Calif.)
- Featherweight strikers collide as Melquizael Costa (24-7, fighting out of Para, Brazil) faces Morgan Charriere (21-11-1, fighting out of Poissy, Île-de-France, France)
- Cesar Almeida (7-1, fighting out of Sao Paulo, Brazil) collides with Cezary Oleksiejczuk (16-3, fighting out of ??czna, Poland) in a middleweight bout
- Sean Sharaf(4-1, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) and Steven Asplund (6-1, fighting out of Minneapolis, Minn.) vie for their first UFC wins in a heavyweight contest
- Bantamweight action sees No. 15 ranked contender Luana Santos (9-2, fighting out of Sao Paulo, Brazil) lock horns with Melissa Croden (7-2, fighting out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada)
- Undefeated debuting heavyweights Allen Frye Jr. (6-0, fighting out of Wilmington, N.C.) and Guilherme Pat (5-0, fighting out of Sao Paulo, Brazil) intend to impress
- Jamey-Lyn Horth (8-2, fighting out of Squamish, British Columbia, Canada) and Tereza Bleda (7-1, fighting out of Prague, Czech Republic) meet in a flyweight bout
For the latest information on bout announcements and additional information for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts are subject to change. Please click?here?to apply for the event.
###
About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 700 million fans and 259 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world while broadcasting to over 975 million TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 80 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC is part of TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO) and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC and @UFC on X, Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok: @UFC.
About ESPN+?? ??
https://espnpressroom.com/us/espnplus
About ESPN
ESPN, the world’s leading sports entertainment brand, features eight U.S. television networks, direct-to-consumer ESPN+, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, endeavors on every continent around the world, and more.?ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc. (an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company) and 20 percent by Hearst.