![]() ![]() On Saturday, he was back in Las Vegas as Factory X had two fighters on the UFC main card in bantamweight Chris Gutierrez and light heavyweight Anthony Smith. It’s been a remarkable evolution for a college-baseball-player-turned-MMA-coach who now spends more than 40 weeks a year on the road. The only title belt missing? One from the UFC. The gym has since grown into a 10,000-square-foot facility off Santa Fe Boulevard, complete with ample mat space, an octagon, its own barber shop and dozens of belts hanging from the center beam. Montoya started Factory X in a small room in the back of a CrossFit studio. Royval’s desire to make his rise about more than fighting is emblematic of Factory X as a whole, where owner/CEO Marc Montoya has been building his local MMA empire since 2008. I wanted to help stop that cycle.” The Boss’ Ethos Dustin Jacoby, right, grapples with head coach Marc Montoya, on the ground, during daily training at Factory X on Decemin Englewood, Colorado. ![]() ![]() I’ve lost a lot of kids that I worked with in there in so many different ways. “There’s so much potential in these kids, but from my time at Lookout I’ve seen a lot of these kids get out of jail and go right back in,” Royval said. That drive to give back is rooted in his years working at the Lookout Mountain Youth Services Center, where he realized he wanted to focus his off-mat efforts on prevention. Outside of the center, he shows up at their sporting events. There, he hangs out with kids, playing hoops and video games, giving boxing pointers, listening to their stories of trouble and triumph. Now a longtime captain of the gym’s fight team, he hasn’t forgotten his humble roots.Įach Wednesday, Royval goes to the Denver Dream Center to mentor at-risk youth. Richardson/The Denver Post)Īs a 15-year-old, Royval biked 13 miles each way to Factory X, often pedaling home in the dark. Factory X is one of Colorado’s top MMA gyms that features several of the state’s top fighters who train together at the gym. That means the world to me.”īrandon Royval, gets a choke-hold on Clay Matza as they grapple during a daily training session at Factory X on Decemin Englewood, Colorado. … I’m going to be the city’s first born-and-raised champion in the UFC to bring the belt back to Denver. “I have a very good opportunity in front of me on Dec. “It’s everything I’ve poured my heart into,” Royval said. Royval is one of 15 UFC fighters who train at the gym, and he sees his title chance against Pantoja as “a collection of my life’s work.” Royval, 31, has been training for this moment for more than half his life at Factory X in Englewood, which is ground zero for many of Colorado’s top professional MMA fighters. With a victory, Royval would become the first Denver-born fighter to win a UFC belt and only the third Colorado-born fighter to do so, joining Shane Carwin and Ben Henderson. 16 in Las Vegas, Royval will fight for the UFC flyweight championship in a rematch with Alexandre Pantoja. He’s been on a tear ever since, and on Dec. About three months later, he got the call he’d been waiting for his whole life: He was headed to the UFC. Royval submitted his opponent with an arm bar 23 seconds into that bout for the Legacy Fighting Alliance title. “Then I went out there and smoked the dude in like 20 seconds. I can’t do this any longer, and I just need to move on with my life.’ I remember walking in there, thinking, ‘If I don’t win this fight, this is the end of my career. “I was desperately trying to get to the UFC, staying up all night to work, practicing as much as I could,” Royval recalled. Between his job working overnight at a juvenile detention center and his training, he was hurt, hardly sleeping and one defeat away from quitting on his dream. Royval walked into the 1stBank Center in Broomfield in November 2019 with a torn shoulder and broken foot. Digital Replica Edition Home Page Close MenuĮNGLEWOOD - Before Brandon Royval got his chance at a UFC belt, he almost ran out of gas. ![]()
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