UFC Bonus Machine to Serve as UFC 336 Backup Fighter for Joshua Van vs. Manel Kape

A former title challenger is set to weigh-in as the official backup fighter for the UFC 336 main event between Joshua Van and Manel Kape.

Scheduled to take place on January 30 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, UFC 336 will be the first numbered UFC card of 2027 after the promotion holds back-to-back UFC Fight Nights in Dallas and Las Vegas to kick off the year.

The co-main event will see Carlos Prates and Michael Morales throw down for the interim welterweight belt and crack at undisputed titleholder Islam Makhachev, and in the night’s headliner Van will attempt to defend his flyweight belt for the third time against hard-hitting challenger Kape.

Joshua Van & Manel Kape Set to Settle Bad Blood at UFC 336

Still less than four years into his UFC career, Van famously won the flyweight belt at UFC 323 when reigning titleholder Alexandre Pantoja injured his arm just 26 seconds into the fight.

Joshua Van (blue gloves) reacts after the fight against Alexandre Pantoja (red gloves) during UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

“The Fearless” defended the title in an epic war with Tatsuro Taira at UFC 328 during Pantoja’s recovery period, and just two months ago Van finally moved on from the result of that first UFC title fight when he welcomed the Brazilian back to the Octagon and earned a unanimous decision victory.

Joshua Van (red gloves) fights Alexandre Pantoja (blue gloves) during UFC 331 at Crypto.com Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kape was the clear next choice to challenge for the flyweight belt following Van’s successful title defense at UFC 331, as “Starboy” has knocked out four-straight opponents and has already had several intense back-and-forth exchanges with Van on social media.

Brandon Royval Reveals UFC 336 Backup Fighter Role

Just in case anything should derail the highly-anticipated fight between Van and Kape, top flyweight contender Brandon Royval informed Ariel Helwani this week that he’ll be serving as the official backup fighter for the UFC 336 main event.

Brandon Royval confirms he'll serve as the backup fighter for Joshua Van x Manel Kape:

“I'm the backup... At least it keeps me in the title picture for a little bit, and it gets me studying the champion and the contender for the championship.

Hopefully it's in the eyes of the… pic.twitter.com/qCwSOt3d8Y
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 11, 2026

A former LFA champion, Royval joined the UFC in 2020 and immediately introduced himself to fans in impressive fashion with back-to-back submissions of Tim Elliott and Kai Kara-France.

Alexandre Pantoja (red gloves) fights Brandon Royval (blue gloves) during UFC 296 at T-Mobile Arena. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

“Raw Dawg” followed up a strong start to his UFC career with a pair of losses to former flyweight titleholders Brandon Moreno and Pantoja, but a three-fight win streak set Royval up for his first UFC title shot at UFC 296.

Will Brandon Royval Gets Joshua Van or Manel Kape Rematch After UFC 336?

After dropping a decision to Pantoja in their rematch in the UFC 296 co-main event, Royval avenged his previous loss to Moreno when he defeated the Mexican via split decision and also handed future title challenger Taira his first professional loss later that year.

Brandon Royval (red gloves) fights Joshua Van (blue gloves) during UFC 317 at T-Mobile Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 34-year-old suffered back-to-back losses to both Van and Kape in 2025, but he returned to the win column earlier this year when he submitted Lone’er Kavanagh in a “Fight of the Night” winning scrap at UFC 329.

Brandon Royval (red gloves) fights Lone'er Kavanagh (blue gloves) in a flyweight bout during UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Royval will be ready to step in and rematch either Van or Kape at UFC 336 if that matchup happens to fall through for any reason, and UFC will presumably start announcing more fights to round out the January 30 card during the coming weeks.

UFC 336 Fight Card

Main Event: Joshua Van vs. Manel Kape – For the UFC Men’s Flyweight Championship

Co-Main Event: Carlos Prates vs. Michael Morales – For the Interim UFC Welterweight Championship

Serhiy Sidey vs. Louis Lee Scott

Add us as a preferred source on Google