LAS VEGAS, NV--(Marketwire - May 22, 2012) - Today, Respect Your Universe, Inc. (RYU) (OTCBB: [ RYUN ]), [ http://www.ryu.com/ ], is thrilled to announce that on Saturday, May 26^th top UFC Fighters Darren Elkins and Jamie Varner will be representing RYU for the highly anticipated UFC 146: Dos Santos vs. Mir. Getting underway at 8:00 p.m. EDT on FX, the UFC 146 Preliminary Card will include Varner vs. Barboza and Elkins vs. Brandao, the final two preliminary bouts to air on FX before coverage switches to Pay-Per-View.

Elkins, a Featherweight with a 13-2-0 MMA win/loss/draw record, is from Indiana with his MMA background rooted in Wrestling. Elkins was an Indiana State High School wrestling champion and finished his career with a record of 191 wins and only 9 defeats. Additionally, Elkins was a four-time Freestyle Wrestling Champion as well as a two-time Greco State Champion. Elkins began his professional MMA career in 2006 as a Lightweight, and before joining the UFC, Darren defeated notable fighters such as Pat Curran and Gideon Ray and even won the C3 Lightweight Title.

"I am so excited and thankful to have the support of a company like RYU," said Darren Elkins. "I like the clean and athletic design of their clothing and I'm looking forward to repping their brand on May 26^th."

Varner, a Lightweight fighter with a 19-6-1 MMA win/loss/draw record, will be returning to the UFC Octagon for the first time since UFC 68 to replace Evan Dunham in a lightweight faceoff against Edson Barboza. From Arizona, Varner most recently competed in the XFC, making an impressive debut at XFC 14, defeating Nate Jolly via knockout in the first round. He returned on the XFC 16: High Stakes card on February 10^th and defeated Drew Fickett via strikes at just 40 seconds into the very first round.

"RYU's holistic outlook of their brand is a good fit for the type of man and fighter I hope to become," commented Jamie Varner.

In addition to this, RYU will also be visible in various elements during the Pay-Per-View coverage of the Main Card bouts of UFC 146. As an official sponsor of the UFC,RYU's logo will be seen for the first time on the Octagon canvas in addition to the locker room camera being sponsored by RYU, the RYU commercial being played throughout the venue and inclusion in the closed captioning of the Pay-Per-View coverage.

Inspired by the dedication of the athlete to the one-thousand-year-old sport of Martial Arts, RYU's debut premium performance Men's Spring Line embodies the art of the sport and places emphasis on respect, strength, honor and sustainability as the foundation of their apparel and products. Items now available from the Men's Spring line include compression tops and shorts, fleece pants and hoodies, wind and track jackets, t-shirts and various accessories such as duffle bags and headwear items. In addition to this, RYU also released their performance shorts and training pants designed specifically to enhance the overall performance of Martial Artists while keeping them comfortable at the same time.

All of the RYU apparel items and products have been produced from organic and/or recycled materials utilizing some of the best yarn and fabric suppliers in the world while achieving the performance attributes desired by Martial Arts fighters and the true everyday athlete.

For more information on RYU visit [ http://www.ryu.com ] or call +1-888-455-6183 ext. 101.

About Respect Your Universe
Respect Your Universe, Inc. (OTCBB: [ RYUN ]) is a premium performance apparel and equipment company rooted in and inspired by Mixed Martial Arts. Focused on the needs of the athlete, RYU brings innovative design, development and production of premium authentic performance gear with style to mixed martial artists and athlete enthusiasts worldwide. The RYU brand is based on respect, strength, honor and sustainability.

Safe Harbor Statements
Except for the statements of historical fact contained herein, the information presented in this news release constitutes "forward-looking statements" as such term is used in applicable United States laws. These statements relate to analyses and other information that are based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet determinable and assumptions of management. Any other statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "expects" or "does not expect," "is expected," "anticipates" or "does not anticipate," "plans," "hopes," "estimates," "projects" or "intends," or stating that certain actions, events or results "may," "could," "would," "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and should be viewed as "forward-looking statements." Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others, our branding and endorsement initiatives, the results of our athlete spokespersons, the actual results of sales and designs of our apparel, the MMA industry and market, the apparel industry and market, the availability of capital to fund our business plan and the resulting dilution caused by the raising of capital through the sale of shares, and product manufacturing and sourcing. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements contained in this news release and in any document referred to in this news release.