UFC Fight Night: Royval v Kape Predictions

The co-main event of UFC Vegas 112 is one of two exciting main card matchups in the featherweight division, with Giga Chikadze colliding with Kevin Vallejos. The other clash at 145 pounds pits Melquizael Costa against Morgan Charriere.

Plus, middleweights Cesar Almeida and Cezary Oleksiejczuk square off, and heavyweights Kennedy Nzechukwu and Marcus Buchecha battle it out.

MAIN CARD:

When: Sunday, December 14, 5:00 AM SAST

Brandon Royval (3.40) v Manel Kape (1.30) (Flyweight)

This weekend’s high-stakes headliner is a case of third time’s the charm.

These two have been scheduled to fight twice, first in March, when Royval (17-7) withdrew due to injury, and then in June, when Kape (21-7) had to pull out with an injury of his own. Now, they get another chance to compete with a potential title shot on the line.

A former title challenger, Royval was closing in on another championship opportunity prior to his surprise decision loss to Van, who became the new champion after Alexandre Pantoja suffered a freak injury moments into their clash last weekend.

Royval is a rock-solid all-rounder. His upset defeat to Van in what is a Fight of the Year contender, was just his second loss since 2022, the other being to Pantoja, who’d been a dominant champion, in 2023.

With split decision wins over former two-time champion Brandon Moreno and Tatsuro Taira, who fought each other last weekend, a victory over the oncoming Kape could clinch second-ranked “Raw Dawg” another crack at the title.

Kape is a thrilling striker on a march towards his first UFC title shot. The former RIZIN champion is coming off back-to-back knockouts of Asu Almabayev and Bruno Silva and has won six of his past seven fights.

“Star Boy” is one of the rare knockout artists at 125 pounds with 12 KOs to his name and is lightning on his feet. Dynamic and destructive, sixth-ranked Kape is full of confidence and will be undeniable with a win this weekend.

This bout boils down to whether Kape can keep the fight standing. His lone loss in the past four years came to grappler Muhammad Mokaev, who controlled and frustrated him last July.

Royval didn’t score a single takedown against Van last time out. Instead, he was seduced by the occasion and pulled into a stand-up battle. He would have learned from that mistake and is smart enough not to repeat it against Kape.

Leaning on his world-class grappling, Royval is a high-value underdog to grind out a win or even secure a submission victory.

Prediction: Royval by decision.

Best Bet: Royval at 3.40.

Alternative Bet: Royval by decision at 6.00.

Giga Chikadze (3.40) v Kevin Vallejos (1.30) (Featherweight)

Rankings mainstay Chikadze (15-5) serves as the acid test for promise-filled young gun Vallejos (16-1) in the co-main event.

A kickboxer of note with a trademark weapon known as the “Giga kick”, Chikadze is a six-year UFC veteran and a fixture in the featherweight rankings. The Georgian boasts notable wins over Cub Swanson and Edson Barboza but has dropped off in recent years.

He’s lost his last two fights, against Arnold Allen and David Onama to slide to No. 15 and is seeking his first victory since outpointing Alex Caceres in 2023. As an experienced southpaw, he remains a tricky puzzle to solve, but at 37, his best days are behind him.

Vallejos (16-1), on the other hand, is just getting started. A highly-rated striker who punched his ticket to the UFC on Dana White’s Contender Series, “El Chino” knocked out Seung Woo Choi in the first round in his promotional debut in March before defeating Danny Silva by decision in August and is aiming to close out his first year on the roster with his biggest win to date.

The Argentinian has put together five straight wins since suffering his first loss to Jean Silva in 2023, and at 23, he’ll have a significant speed advantage. He also throws at a much higher volume, landing 6.28 significant strikes per minute compared to Chikadze’s 3.83.

With those advantages, and better grappling in his back pocket should he need it, Vallejos is primed for victory.

Prediction: Vallejos by decision.

Best Bet: Vallejos by decision at 2.25.

Alternative Bet: Fight to go the distance at 1.80.

Cesar Almeida (2.70) v Cezary Oleksiejczuk (1.45) (Middleweight)

In another veteran versus prospect matchup, Almeida (7-1) welcomes Oleksiejczuk (16-3) to the UFC in the featured bout.

Coming from a kickboxing background, Almeida is lethal, like he showed with his wicked first-round knockout of Abdul Razak Alhassan in January. However, with just eight mixed martial arts fights under his belt at the age of 37, he arrived in the sport too late.

Oleksiejczuk (16-3) arrives in the UFC at 25 for what will be his 20th pro fight. The Pole is a punisher, with his last five wins all coming by knockout and his last three all in the first round. Heavy-handed and aggressive without being reckless, he’s an exciting addition to the UFC’s 185-pound division.

This should be a thriller as Almeida won’t go down without a fight. The Brazilian, however, will be going down, with Oleksiejczuk set to crush “Cesinha” and introduce himself to UFC fans in style.  

Prediction: Oleksiejczuk by knockout.

Best Bet: Oleksiejczuk by KO/TKO/DQ at 2.20.

Alternative Bet: Under 2.5 rounds at 1.55.

Melquizael Costa (1.85) v Morgan Charriere (1.93) (Featherweight)

One of the most active fighters of the year, Costa (24-7) heads into this evenly matched affair looking to bag his fourth win of 2025.

“The Dalmatian” started the year with a submission victory over Andre Fili before adding decision wins over Christian Rodriguez and Julian Erosa and is eager to close out 2025 on the perfect note.

The Brazilian is as talented and dangerous on the feet as he is on the ground, as his seven knockouts and eight submissions suggest.

Inconsistency has been an issue for Charriere (21-11-1) ever since the former Cage Warriors champion touched down in the Octagon last April. When he’s on, he’s on, and when he’s not, he’s not, as he’s alternated results in his five UFC outings  

All three of his UFC wins are by knockout, including against Nate Landwehr last time out, and both of his loss in the promotion were by decision. “The Last Pirate” is a high-level striker and is hell-bent on going back-to-back for the first time in the UFC.

Fighting four times in a year takes a lot out of a fighter, as we saw last weekend when Merab Dvalishvili lost the bantamweight belt to Petr Yan. However, Costa’s last fight was in May, so he should be rested and ready.

Charriere probably has an edge in the stand-up department, but Costa is the more complete fighter and will use his well-roundedness to mix things up, change levels and pick up the win.

Prediction: Costa by decision.

Best Bet: Costa at 1.85.

Alternative Bet: Costa by decision at 2.40.

Kennedy Nzechukwu (1.76) v Marcus Buchecha (2.00) (Heavyweight)

A heavyweight clash of styles will get the main card underway and should be super interesting.

A towering striker, Nigeria’s Nzechukwu (14-6) has 10 knockouts to his name, including first-round wins over Chris Barnett and Lukasz Brzeski to kick off his move up from the 205-pound ranks to the heavyweight division.

However, he was cooled down by heel hook master Valter Walker in his last bout, getting caught in the Brazilian’s patented submission, so “The African Savage” is aiming to bounce back.

Buchecha (5-2) is not just any grappler, he’s one of the most decorated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitors of all time. A 15-time world champion, he came into the UFC with plenty of intrigue, but lost his promotional debut to Martin Buday in July.

Nzechukwu would’ve learned his lesson from the Walker loss and should be a lot more alert to Buchecha’s takedown attempts and use his five-and-a-half-inch reach advantage to keep the Brazilian at bay and ultimately finish him.

Prediction: Nzechukwu by knockout.

Best Bet: Nzechukwu by KO/TKO/DQ at 2.50.

Alternative Bet: Nzechukwu at 1.76.