Aiman KhalidOct 14, 2026, 02:06 AM ETMultiple AuthorsOpen Extended ReactionsThe fighting life of a UFC flyweight was once an unenvied one.Constant uncertainty over the future of the division, a lack of big pay-per-view interest and an unfortunate routine of far too many fighters getting cut for the weight class to sustain itself were just some of the problems that characterised the modern era. UFC president Dana White put it in simple terms, saying after Demetrious Johnson’s UFC exit in 2018 that “people didn’t care” about the flyweights. Even Olympic gold medalist and former two-division champion Henry Cejudo struggled to see how the flyweight division would continue as a part of the UFC, with his own brash persona and entertaining title defences pivotal to maintaining awareness of the division.Much has changed since the days of Cejudo though, and the flyweights now have a genuine claim to being one of the most exciting divisions in the whole of the UFC. And one man at the forefront of that charge is another promising fighting talent from across the Atlantic, with England’s Lone’er Kavanagh enjoying a rise like few others this past year.He accepted a short-notice fight against ex-champion Brandon Moreno in the lion’s den of Mexico City in March and produced one of the most stunning UFC upsets in recent memory, taking the unanimous decision win in front of a hostile crowd.
Kavanagh was unranked before that fight and despite more recently losing to Brandon Royval at UFC 329, he remains just a win away from breaking into the flyweight title conversation. Taking on Royval on the night of Conor McGregor’s return in Las Vegas in July, Kavanagh was submitted but earned the fight of the night on one of the promotion’s most-watched recent cards in a back-and-forth slugfest. The 27-year-old’s exciting style and high ceiling was on show that evening and will be again when he faces Ramazonbek Temirov on what is remarkably just his second high-profile numbered event at UFC 333 on Oct. 24.”Thinking back to certain moments [in Mexico City], it was like a rollercoaster, it was a sick opportunity and I’m glad I did it and my team backed me to do it,” Kavanagh tells ESPN.”[Royval was] another step on the journey, losing is never fun, no matter what stage you’re at whether you’re at the top or at any point of your career but unfortunately sometimes you have to learn like that — learning on the go, that’s what we’re doing right now.”I believe I’ve got the best team around me so I truly believe with this team I can make it all the way to the top and that’s the plan, that’s the aim.”I’m always trying to work on things from every fight. Unfortunately, you learn a lot more when you lose.”For Kavanagh, the lights have quickly turned brighter.
Like many of his British counterparts in the UFC, he was made in Cage Warriors, the organisation that can take credit for the likes of McGregor, Paddy Pimblett and Tom Aspinall. From there, a first round knockout on Dana White’s Contender Series saw the journey in the big time begin. His first professional defeat came in the UFC against the experienced Charles Johnson, but that was quickly forgotten with the Moreno heist that saw his stock in the game skyrocket. Kavanagh’s front-footed, devious style stemming from his kickboxing roots has even earned him praise from one of the greatest to ever step in the octagon with a Jon Jones Facetime after that UFC Mexico win leaving him “starstruck.””Your Muay Thai is beautiful, your kicks, they don’t show at all.
They have no telegraph. It’s so nice,” Jones said to Kavanagh.It is a style that was born at London’s Great Britain Top Team (GBTT), where alongside UFC veteran Nathaniel Wood and fellow prospect Shanelle Dyer, Kavanagh has honed his craft, going from a five-time K1 kickboxing champion to now potentially a statement win away from challenging for UFC gold under British MMA trailblazer Brad Pickett. And that too in a division where the competition is possibly as fierce as it has ever been. Royval, Tatsuro Tairo, Manuel Kape, Asu Almabayev and bona fide flyweight royalty Alexandre Pantoja make up the spine of a group of challengers that Kananagh finds himself a part of.Joshua Van’s UFC 331 title defence ended any doubts about his validity as champion, with a dominant win over Pantoja, and at just 24-years-old he looks set for a stint at the top — where Kavanagh aspires to be.
But first, No. 7 ranked, one below Kavanagh, and unbeaten in the UFC, the explosive Temirov is one of the toughest challenges the Englishman has faced in his career, and in a weight class as deep as the flyweights, back-to-back losses would see Kavanagh fall mercilessly down the pecking order — the stakes are high at UFC 333.”I think the flyweight division is the best division at the moment. It’s forever changing,” Kavanagh says. “There are so many young up and comers but there are also so many people that have been around for so long. So it’s got a good mixture of everything and to be honest, just excited to be a part of it – it’s sick being a flyweight at this time.”I’m a very ‘one fight at a time’ kind of person, I’ll always look at what’s in front of me and then what’s next but I think it would be an exciting fight either way, [Joshua] Van vs.
Lon.”Born in London to an Irish father and Chinese mother, Kavanagh wears his heritage on his sleeve with his name Lone’er translating to “Little Dragon” in English. He credits his mum for pushing him into MMA, a decision that has since paid dividends.Kavanagh is now set to be a part of a main card alongside two title fights at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. In his way, Uzbekistan’s Temirov is coming in red hot on the back of a first-round finish against Steve Erceg, he last tasted defeat in an MMA bout seven years ago and has never been knocked out.”I haven’t seen all the fighters just fighting like me. Just striking punches, just making knockouts.
But my punches will just kill them all,” Temirov told the UFC.The kickboxer is aware of the danger that Temirov carries but also the opportunity up for grabs.”I think a win there puts me right back up there. He’s a dangerous opponent. He’s got some good wins under him, a lot of wins, but I think a win against him puts me right back up at the top. [I’m] always looking for a finish,” Kavanagh said.”His main weapons are his heavy hands, and that excites me. I love fights like that and I think it’s a good fight for me.
Hopefully [another fight of the night], I’m looking for more performances of the night.”As is now customary with Kavanagh’s UFC bouts, his throwdown against the formidable Temirov is one not to be missed. With the top of the flyweight division so deep he will want to turn all the excitement surrounding him into consistency to earn a shot at Van’s belt, that journey will take its latest step in a treacherous division.And as Bruce Buffer introduces both fighters, perhaps there will be something for the UFC bosses and fans alike to take away before a single punch is even thrown. That all these years after Cejudo and Johnson have been and gone, the flyweights are box office property once again.
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