The UFC’s 2025 schedule comes to a close on Saturday with a Fight Night card headlined by flyweight contenders Brandon Royval and Manel Kape.
The 13-bout lineup also features a pair of fan-friendly featherweight matchups with Kevin Vallejos looking to break into the rankings when he takes on No. 15 contender Giga Chikadze, and Melquizael Costa seeks his fifth consecutive win when he faces Morgan Charriere who’s coming off a highlight-reel knockout win.
All 26 athletes slated to fight at the UFC Apex successfully made weight on their first attempt on Friday. Royval and Kape both weighed 126 pounds, which is the limit for non-title flyweight matchups, with Kape the last fighter to step on the scale. The rising contender hit the mark with mere seconds remaining in the allotted weigh-in window.
Despite the event being in Las Vegas, there is a contingent of Canadian fighters hoping to end the year in style.
A trio of Canadian women, each representing a different weight class, are in action with Gillian Robertson, Melissa Croden and Jamey-Lyn Horth all featured on the prelims.
Lance Gibson Jr., the son of two-time UFC competitor Lance Gibson Sr., is making his UFC debut on short notice. The 30-year-old who fights out of Port Moody, B.C., will open the main card in a catchweight bout with Bobby “King” Green. Both fighters typically compete in the lightweight division at 155 pounds but due to the short-notice nature of the matchup they agreed to a 160-pound catchweight and each stepped on the scale at 158.5 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in.
The preliminary card also has the anticipated debut of Yaroslav Amosov. The former Bellator MMA welterweight champion will take on Neil Magny who ranks tied for second place on the UFC’s all-time wins list with 24. Both Magny and Amosov came in at the non-title welterweight limit of 171 pounds.
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Flyweight contenders Brandon Royval and Manel Kape meet at the UFC Apex in the final main event of 2025. Watch UFC Fight Night action Saturday, Dec. 13 on Sportsnet 360 and Sportsnet+ with coverage beginning at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.
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Below is the projected bout order (subject to change) and full predictions for UFC Fight Night: Royval vs. Kape…
— Brandon Royval vs. Manel Kape
— Giga Chikadze vs. Kevin Vallejos
— Cesar Almeida vs. Cezary Oleksiejczuk
— Melquizael Costa vs. Morgan Charriere
— Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Marcus Buchecha
— Bobby “King” Green vs. Lance Gibson Jr.
— Amanda Lemos vs. Gillian Robertson
— Joanderson Brito vs. Isaac Thomson
— Neil Magny vs. Yaroslav Amosov
— Steven Asplund vs. Sean Sharaf
— Melissa Croden vs. Luana Santos
— Allen Frye vs. Guilherme Pat
— Jamey-Lyn Horth vs. Tereza Bleda
Ahead of each UFC event in 2025, UFC reporter Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter), producer Dan Fernandes (@DanFernandes__) and writer/editor Mike Johnston (@MikeyJ_MMA) will peruse the odds and make four betting predictions using fantasy dollars: one best bet, one favourite, one underdog and one dart throw wager. REMINDER: Sportsnet is committed to promoting and educating audiences about the importance of betting responsibly. Sources for responsible gambling can be found HERE.
Cage Lock: Asplund vs. Sharaf ends inside the distance -588
Favourite: Melquizael Costa -115
Underdog: Brandon Royval +240
Dart Throw: Costa wins inside the distance +575
While Asplund and Sharaf could go the distance, they have combined for only a single decision result in their professional careers. More often than not, there should be a finish in this matchup. … Costa’s odds are surprisingly low given that he has gone 3-0 in 2025 against three opponents who I believe could beat Charriere on any given day. I think that he wins this fight and that scoring a finish is on the table. I have been very impressed by his performances in 2025. … Kape is the rightful favourite, but Royval is always live and if he can avoid the power of Kape, I would not be surprised if he comes close to doubling him up in output. While Kape is dangerous, Royval has proven his durability throughout his career.
Cage Lock: Horth vs. Bleda goes the distance -275
Favourite: Gillian Robertson -200
Underdog: Melissa Croden +105
Dart Throw: Croden by TKO/KO +450
A nice way to close out the year with all four picks featuring Canadians. I don’t think too much justification is needed here. Croden by TKO/KO in Vancouver earlier this year was one of very few darts I actually hit. Lightning could easily strike twice here especially since Melissa Croden vs Luana Santos will be a classic grappler vs. striker matchup.
Cage Lock: Almeida vs. Oleksiejczuk ends inside the distance -250
Favourite: Melquizael Costa -115
Underdog: Brandon Royval +240
Dart Throw: Royval by submission Round 4 +3500
Royval will likely get tagged early and often but his pace won’t fade as the fight progresses while Kape’s could. Over five rounds, I see Royval eventually wearing down Kape and showing why he has more tools in his toolkit. Gotta swing big for the final event of 2025 so I’ll double down and say Royval finds a late submission. … Costa could get clipped by Charriere, who hits hard, yet I’ve been super impressed with Costa on his current win streak and believe he’s an overlooked talent in the featherweight division. … Cezary Oleksiejczuk has said he wants to slow things down against Cesar Almeida but both guys hit so hard I don’t see this one needing all three rounds.
Three legs: Asplund vs. Sharaf ends inside the distance + Horth vs. Bleda goes distance + Almeida vs. Oleksiejczuk inside the distance
Parlay odds: +123 (to win: $123.38)
2025 STANDINGS AFTER 41 EVENTS
2025 winnings: +$276.96 (on $100 bets)
AARON’S RECORDS/TOTALS (81-80-3, +12.64 units)
Cage Lock: 32-7-2 (-$50.04)
Favourite: 22-19 (-$690.96)
Underdog: 18-22-1 (+$755.24)
Dart throw: 9-32 (+$1,250)
DAN’S RECORDS/TOTALS (85-74-5, -11.09 units)
Cage Lock: 36-5 (+$200.76)
Favourite: 26-14-1 (-$235.57)
Underdog: 20-20-1 (+$615.24)
Dart throw: 3-35-3 (-$1,690)
MIKE’S RECORDS/TOTALS (65-93-6, -29.19 units)
Cage Lock: 28-12-1 (-$303.54)
Favourite: 20-21 (-$695.51)
Underdog: 15-24-2 (+$490)
Dart throw: 2-36-3 (-$2,410)
Cage Lock: The pick deemed to be the wager most likely to win regardless of what the odds look like. The Cage Locks parlay will combine Aaron’s, Dan’s and Mike’s respective best bet for each event.
Favourite: A fighter with winning odds shorter than -300 but not longer than -110. On chalkier cards with a dearth of available moneyline favourites that meet those criteria, prop bets are allowed to be selected.
Underdog: Any fighter with longer odds than their opponent’s.
Dart Throw: Any prop bet or moneyline wager with odds of +400 or longer.
(Betting odds above are via BetMGM, submitted at various times throughout week, and subject to change prior to the fights)
