UFC Vegas 62 Beforemath: They’re Starving Us Out
Grasso vs. Araujo? 🤢 Let’s talk Royval vs. Askarov in protest.
The UFC is really starving us before UFC 280 in a couple weeks. This weekend we’re being force fed Alexa Grasso and Viviane Araujo in the main event. Who cares about women’s flyweight? Not this guy, I can tell you that. All the hip kids know the real main event will be between Brandon Royval and Askar Askarov. So on UFC Vegas 62 Beforemath, we’re talking about that fight.
UFC Vegas 62 Tale of the Tape
Askar Askarov was once the boogeyman of the UFC’s flyweight division. He fought the former champ in Brandon Moreno to a draw and notched wins over some of the best the division had to offer. The ACB/ACA veteran (a hotbed for MMA talent), made his debut against Moreno before anyone knew anything about them. After that draw, Askarov beat the ever-tricky Tim Elliott, Alexandre Pantoja, and Joseph Benavidez.
Unfortunately he took the first loss of his career in his last outing as a heavy favorite against Kai Kara-France. Now he looks to bounce back against a wild man in Royval.
Brandon Royval doesn’t have near the pedigree that Askarov has. But he does have a win over Kai Kara-France and what a fight that was. Unlike Askarov, Rovyal finished Tim Elliott as well. But where Royval falls short in comparison to Askarov was his loss to Brandon Moreno (a shoulder injury) and Alexandre Pantoja back to back.
Since then, Royval has come out and won two in a row against Rogerio Bontorin and Matt Schnell.
So what we have is a four versus five matchup that will help the winner get on track for a shot at the title with a win or two, and the other will likely not see a title shot for a few years. The stakes are high, and so are these two fighter’s skills!
Askar Askarov: Control, Control, Control
Askar Askarov is a name not often mentioned in MMA circles when it comes to the flyweight title. But those “in the know” have been talking about Askarov’s skill level for years. Askarov has made a quick run to the top of the division by taking his opponents down and controlling them. In his wins, Askarov has shown the ability to get some very good fighters to the ground and stay out of danger when there. He tires his opponents out and in the latter portions of a fight he puts his foot on the gas and puts a statement on the fight to take the decision. Askar Askarov is not a finisher.
With a fighter as scrambly and unpredictable as Brandon Royval is, Askar Askarov is going to have his hands full at UFC Vegas 62.
For Askarov, the takedown will be the key to victory and with Royval being as capable as he is on the ground, control will be what he is looking for first on a takedown. We saw Royval scramble into position against Moreno with Moreno looking for submissions. Askarov needs to get Royval to the ground and secure control before throwing any strikes, something that he’s already good at.
Brandon Royval also steps in with knees quite often in his fights, which has done damage and saw him taken down because of. Askarov will look to snatch up a leg of Royval and get the takedown from there.
Brandon Royval: You gotta be controlled too, bro
Brandon Royval looked like he was on the way out of the UFC after losing two straight, despite one being an arm injury in a competitive fight against the future champion. But he’s bounced back and now Royval is primed to strike while the iron is hot at UFC Vegas 62.
Royval fights like a wild, wild man. We saw that in his insane win over Kai Kara-France. There we saw Royval fight beat after being hurt by Kara-France. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately) for him, Askarov hasn’t hurt anyone since leaving ACA for the UFC. So how does he win?
Like Askar Askarov, Brandon Royval needs to be controlled. Royval needs to know that Askar Askarov has the skills to hold him down and keep him there. That’s why he needs to avoid getting taken down and not creating a scramble.
He needs to trick Askarov to standing with him, or give him no choice like Kara-France did. There, he’s not at much risk of being finished, although that still looms as a possibility as it does in any fight. He can ding up Askarov on the feet and should he knock him down, go for the club and sub.
He needs to be smart with his knees and kicks. With a takedown artist like Askarov, that can be dangerous, as we talked about before.
Regardless of what happens, this fight is my most looked forward to. Let’s get hype!