The MMA world was thrilled as Dana White announced a win bonus to Brandon Royval, who lost a gruelling three-round fight against rising contender Joshua Van on the UFC 317 main card on June 28.

During the post-fight press conference, White, the UFC CEO, praised both fighters’ efforts and commended Royval for accepting a high-risk, low-reward fight against a much lower-ranked opponent.

Typically, the UFC fight purse is divided into show money and win bonus. In case of a loss, fighters usually miss out on the win bonus. White made an exception for Royval, stating:

“I am going to pay Royval his win money. He took that fight against the No.12-ranked guy on short notice and put on an absolute war. So, they’re both going to do well tonight. I’m absolutely positive they deserve it.”

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Check out Dana White’s comments below (2:48):

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Popular MMA content page @mma_orbit reported White’s announcement on X, prompting fans to share their thoughts in the comments section.

One fan wrote:

“Congrats champ. Well deserved.”

Popular comedian and podcaster Andrew Schulz wrote in a separate post on X:

“Joshua Van vs. Brandon Royval… Give them all the $$$.”

Check out more fan reactions below:

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Fan reactions

Royval, the No.1-ranked flyweight contender, accepted to face No.12-ranked Joshua Van in a short-notice fight after his original opponent, Manel Kape, was forced to withdraw due to a foot injury.

Van, who made a quick turnaround after his UFC 316 win over Bruno Silva on June 7, proved to be the better fighter and secured an upset win over Royval after an intense three-round clash.

Royval struggled with Van’s speed, volume and effective counter-striking in Round 1. While he made the fight chaotic and more competitive in the later rounds, Van still maintained the lead, ultimately winning by unanimous decision (29-28 X 2, 30-27). The victory is likely to propel Van into the top three of the official flyweight rankings, accelerating his quest for the title shot.