Preview: UFC 274 Prelims

Flyweights

#6 FLW | Brandon Royval (13-6, 3-2 UFC) vs. #9 FLW | Matt Schnell (15-5, 5-3 UFC)

ODDS: Royval (-240), Schnell (+195)

This should be an interesting fight on a few levels, as these two potential flyweight contenders are trying to figure some things out and also figure to match up for some fireworks. Royval took the flyweight division by storm during the pandemic era of the UFC. Signed on late notice in May 2020, Royval immediately made his presence known as a whirlwind of violence, outlasting and tapping out Tim Elliott before finishing Kai Kara France in an absolutely wild sprint to kick off his UFC career. A November 2020 bout against Brandon Moreno was going to same way, but Royval separated his shoulder in a back-and-forth battle, ending the fight early and dulling his momentum. Moreno then went on to the flyweight championship. Royval suffered a rough wrestling-heavy loss to Alexandre Pantoja in his lone fight of 2021, and his narrow win over Rogerio Bontorin in January showed a fighter in transition. Royval appeared to be more measured and selective in his offense, and while he still showed a lot of creativity and output, it made for a rough showing against a persistent and durable opponent. Still just 29, the Colorado native has time to come out the other side from these growing pains, so it will be interesting to see how he looks here against Schnell.

Schnell seems to come out of the other side of his journey towards a more effective style, though “Danger” had to take his path for different reasons. Coming into the UFC in 2016, Schnell appeared to have the type of all-purpose offensive potency that would serve him well towards becoming an immediate concern in the flyweight division. Instead, the Louisianan was betrayed by his chin. In a bit of a surprise compared to most typical flyweights, Schnell would just go out when clipped with hard shots, most notably losing to Hector Sandoval via hammerfists in 2017. That led Schnell to make an impressive transition to a more patient and range-focused striking style, eschewing his previous wild offense for an approach centered on keeping his opponents at bay or relying on his considerable grappling chops if an opponent decided to pursue a takedown. That eventually hit a wall at much the same level as Royval. Pantoja managed to successfully lure Schnell into a brawl and a brutal knockout, while Bontorin’s persistent pressure basically negated all of his work in terms of range-dictating offense. If Royval is truly trying to turn a corner into a more passive fighter, that may be exactly the wrong adjustment here, but he did show enough willingness to at least try things—both in terms of constant movement and creativity—that something should be able to get through and get the ball rolling for a finish. This could be surprisingly tedious until things careen towards an ending.

FEELY'S PREDICTION: The pick is Royval via second-round knockout.

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