Brandon Royval Armbar Secures Vacant LFA Flyweight Championship in 23 Seconds
Brandon
Royval pulled off quite the magic trick: He made Nate
Williams disappear in 23 seconds.
The surging Royval captured the vacant Legacy Fighting Alliance flyweight championship in spectacular fashion, as he submitted the 5-foot-1 Williams with a first-round armbar in the LFA 79 headliner on Friday at 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. A blinding burst of offense was over in less than half a minute.
Royval (10-4, 6-2 LFA) launched a flying knee and a head kick
inside the first 10 seconds, caught his counterpart in a triangle
during a subsequent exchange and then moved to an omaplata. From
there, the Factory
X export made a smooth transition to the armbar and forced the
tapout. A short-notice replacement for Jared
Scoggins, Williams (29-19, 0-1 LFA) never stood a chance.
In the bantamweight co-main event, repeated takedowns, damaging ground-and-pound and a sturdy chin carried Zviad Lazishvili to a three-round unanimous decision over Josh Huber. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 29-28 for the unbeaten Lazishvili (3-0, 1-0 LFA).
The defeat closed the book on Huber’s run of consecutive victories at four.
Meanwhile, Factory X prospect Youssef Zalal put away Jaime Hernandez with a flying knee in the first round of their featured confrontation at a 140-pound catchweight. Hernandez (1-3, 0-2 LFA) met his end 2:15 into Round 1.
Zalal (7-2, 4-2 LFA) chipped away with a series of kicks to the upper and lower lead leg, dodged much of the return fire and went about weaving his web. He backed up Hernandez with a high kick, then went airborne with a perfectly timed and exquisitely placed knee strike to the head. The devastating impact sent the Pariah MMA rep careening backward into the fence.
The loss snapped a two-fight losing streak for Zalal.
Finally, Shooto Brazil veteran Carlos do Carmo Motta kept his perfect professional record intact, as he cut down George Martinez with a body kick and follow-up punches in the first round of their flyweight showcase. Martinez (3-1, 0-1 LFA) succumbed to blows 37 seconds into Round 1.
Motta (5-0, 1-0 LFA) dazzled in his stateside debut. After a wild exchange, the Brazilian reset and sent a kick plunging into Martinez’s solar plexus. The Factory X standout doubled over and retreated to the fence, where he was met with a volley of punches that finished the job.
In other action, Eric Grant (3-4, 1-0 LFA) laid claim to a unanimous decision over Jonathon Wyderko (4-2, 2-1 LFA) in a three-round lightweight tilt, drawing 30-27, 29-28 and 30-27 marks from the judges; Justin Wetzell (5-1, 1-0 LFA) wiped out Michael Aquila (0-1, 0-1 LFA) with punches 27 seconds into the first round of their bantamweight affair; Michael Stack (1-0, 1-0 LFA) submitted Brian Mitchell (0-1, 0-1 LFA) with a rear-naked choke 3:09 into the first round of their pairing at 145 pounds; and Edwin Chavez (1-0, 1-0 LFA) took a unanimous decision from Michael Santos (1-2, 0-1 LFA) in a three-round featherweight scrap.
The surging Royval captured the vacant Legacy Fighting Alliance flyweight championship in spectacular fashion, as he submitted the 5-foot-1 Williams with a first-round armbar in the LFA 79 headliner on Friday at 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. A blinding burst of offense was over in less than half a minute.
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In the bantamweight co-main event, repeated takedowns, damaging ground-and-pound and a sturdy chin carried Zviad Lazishvili to a three-round unanimous decision over Josh Huber. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 29-28 for the unbeaten Lazishvili (3-0, 1-0 LFA).
Unable to stay upright, Huber (22-11, 0-1 LFA) struggled to find a
rhythm. Lazishvili spent a majority of the first two rounds
executing takedowns and battering the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black
belt with slashing elbows and short but powerful punches. Huber
managed to turn the tide in his favor in Round 3, where he buzzed
the promising Georgian with a stabbing left cross. However, he
lacked the physical wherewithal to push Lazishvili beyond his
limits and let an opportunity slip through his fingers.
The defeat closed the book on Huber’s run of consecutive victories at four.
Meanwhile, Factory X prospect Youssef Zalal put away Jaime Hernandez with a flying knee in the first round of their featured confrontation at a 140-pound catchweight. Hernandez (1-3, 0-2 LFA) met his end 2:15 into Round 1.
Zalal (7-2, 4-2 LFA) chipped away with a series of kicks to the upper and lower lead leg, dodged much of the return fire and went about weaving his web. He backed up Hernandez with a high kick, then went airborne with a perfectly timed and exquisitely placed knee strike to the head. The devastating impact sent the Pariah MMA rep careening backward into the fence.
The loss snapped a two-fight losing streak for Zalal.
Finally, Shooto Brazil veteran Carlos do Carmo Motta kept his perfect professional record intact, as he cut down George Martinez with a body kick and follow-up punches in the first round of their flyweight showcase. Martinez (3-1, 0-1 LFA) succumbed to blows 37 seconds into Round 1.
Motta (5-0, 1-0 LFA) dazzled in his stateside debut. After a wild exchange, the Brazilian reset and sent a kick plunging into Martinez’s solar plexus. The Factory X standout doubled over and retreated to the fence, where he was met with a volley of punches that finished the job.
In other action, Eric Grant (3-4, 1-0 LFA) laid claim to a unanimous decision over Jonathon Wyderko (4-2, 2-1 LFA) in a three-round lightweight tilt, drawing 30-27, 29-28 and 30-27 marks from the judges; Justin Wetzell (5-1, 1-0 LFA) wiped out Michael Aquila (0-1, 0-1 LFA) with punches 27 seconds into the first round of their bantamweight affair; Michael Stack (1-0, 1-0 LFA) submitted Brian Mitchell (0-1, 0-1 LFA) with a rear-naked choke 3:09 into the first round of their pairing at 145 pounds; and Edwin Chavez (1-0, 1-0 LFA) took a unanimous decision from Michael Santos (1-2, 0-1 LFA) in a three-round featherweight scrap.
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