Brandon Royval details the exhaustive preparation that went into his fight with Lone'er Kavanagh:
"I was subscribed to Lone'er Kavanagh's emails, bro. There wasn't a rock left unturned.
Most of our fight took place in his corner, and one thing that helped me out was hearing his corner say, 'The kicks aren't there. Go to the head with the kick.'
The moment he went for a head kick, I just stepped in with a punch, and I was like, 'Sick.' I recognized the voices because I pay attention to all their YouTube videos and all their fighters.
I just thought this was such a big fight, and Lone'er Kavanagh is so good. I have so much respect for him, and I had so many nerves going into this fight. I just wanted to make sure everything was in order, bro."
🏴 Inglaterra: 4-2-3-1 en rombo, Kane de falso 9, Bellingham llegando desde segunda línea, Pontas invertidos, Presión alta, Rotaciones en el mediocampo
🇦🇷 Argentina: El que no se la pase a Messi es gay
🚨 “I Think I Woke Something Up in Him” -Bellingham Admits Mistake vs Messi
🎙️Reporter: Jude, you were leading until around the 80th minute and then lost it before full time… that must really hurt?
Jude🗣️: Yeah… it hurts a lot. Honestly, it’s one of those feelings you don’t forget. We were in control for so long, and to see it slip away like that so late… it’s painful. I really wanted to win this — we all did. But at the same time, we gave everything. No one left anything out there.
🎙️Reporter: There was a moment between you and Lionel Messi during the game — it looked heated. What happened?
Jude🗣️: (laughs slightly) Yeah… I think that was probably my mistake, to be honest. I tried to get under his skin a bit, maybe distract him. At that point, everything was going our way, but I also know… as long as Messi is still on the pitch, the game is never finished.
So I thought maybe I could put him off a little. But yeah… I think I did the opposite. I think I woke something up in him.
🎙️Reporter: So no bad blood between you two?
Jude🗣️: No, not at all. He’s my idol, honestly. There’s nothing serious there. Emotions are high in a game like that, especially a semi-final.
And actually… after the final whistle, he came over to me and spoke to me, tried to console me. That meant a lot, because in my head I was thinking, ‘he probably hates me now’ (laughs). But that just shows the kind of person he is.
So yeah… nothing but respect for him.”