Kavanagh targets Temirov at UFC 333 after vowing to fix mistakes from Royval defeat

Lone’er Kavanagh steps back into the octagon at UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi this Saturday, facing undefeated flyweight contender Ramazan Temirov on the main card — a fight the 27-year-old Englishman views as a chance to prove he belongs among the division’s elite after a turbulent run of high-profile bouts.

Kavanagh has been thrown into the deep end since joining the UFC off Dana White’s Contender Series in 2024. He stunned the rankings with an upset win over two-time champion Brandon Moreno, but then tapped out in the third round against Brandon Royval in his most recent outing. Those back-to-back assignments against Royval, Moreno, and Charles Johnson — against whom he went 1-2 — have served as a crash course at the sport’s highest level.

“It’s about decision making,” Kavanagh told MMA Fighting. “Making the right decisions at the right point, not rushing. I felt like I rushed a little bit on certain aspects. I made the wrong decisions elsewhere and it’s just learning from those. That’s what it is, it’s all XP at the end of the day and I was in there with someone that has so much XP, I learned a lot from him.”

Kavanagh arrived in the UFC with just seven professional bouts behind him, having gone undefeated in England’s Cage Warriors promotion. The speed of his ascent means each loss carries extra weight, but Royval himself offered an unusual vote of confidence after their fight, calling Kavanagh a future UFC champion.

“A hundred percent I understand where he’s coming from,” Kavanagh said. “Brandon’s a nice guy. I do appreciate him saying that, but at the same time it didn’t go my way, so I focus on those things.”

The focus now shifts entirely to Temirov, who enters the bout 3-0 inside the octagon and riding momentum from a spectacular knockout of former title challenger Steve Erceg. Temirov also holds a win over Johnson, the man who handed Kavanagh one of his UFC defeats in 2025, adding an extra layer of significance to Saturday’s matchup.

Kavanagh has studied his opponent closely and sees a compelling stylistic clash in the making.

“You can definitely see he’s got dynamite in his hands,” Kavanagh said. “Likes to come forward and throw big shots, looping shots. But I think that’s what makes it so exciting — power vs. speed almost kind of thing. I like to think I’ve got power in my hands as well, so it will be a good fight to watch.”

A win over the hard-hitting Temirov would firmly re-establish Kavanagh as a flyweight title contender; a second consecutive defeat would raise serious questions about the pace of his development at the top level.