Tag: Manel Kape

UFC Fight Night 234 pre-event facts: Jim Miller, Andrei Arlovski look to build on all-time wins leads

The best facts about UFC Fight Night 234, which features chances for Jim Miller and Andrei Arlovski to add to their historic resumes.

After a nearly monthlong hiatus, the UFC opens its 2024 schedule on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 234, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.

Light heavyweight contenders are set to rematch in the main event of the card. [autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] (18-1-1 MMA, 9-1-1 UFC) and [autotag]Johnny Walker[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 7-4 UFC) will run it back with five rounds scheduled after their originally meeting at UFC 294 in October ended in a no contest due to an illegal knee from Ankalaev that halted the action.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts for UFC Fight Night 234.

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Video: ‘UFC Fight Night 234: Ankalaev vs. Walker 2’ media day interviews

Before UFC Fight Night 234 on Saturday, watch as the main card athletes speak to reporters at media day.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 234, which takes place at the UFC Apex with a card that streams entirely on ESPN+, goes down Saturday.

Before fight night arrives, though, notable athletes from the main card spoke to reporters Wednesday at media day.

If you happen to miss any of the individual sessions on the live stream, check below for the archived videos of each media day.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 234.

MMA Junkie’s 2023 Gym of the Year: Xtreme Couture

Xtreme Couture is MMA Junkie’s 2023 Gym of the Year for its success molding Francis Ngannou, Sean Strickland, Patchy Mix and others.

What a year it was for the Las Vegas-based Xtreme Couture’s coaching staff and fight team.

Head coach Eric Nicksick was at the helm, flanked by a staff that includes Dewey Cooper, Dennis Davis, Nathan Pettit, Eddie Barraco, Jimmy Gifford, Danny Davis Jr., Maki Pitolo, Jake Shields, Ray Sefo, Roman Isbell, Matheus Naccache, Gil Guardado, and Justin Jaynes among others.

Among the gym’s accomplishments in 2023, [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] crossed over into the world of boxing, where he knocked down (and nearly defeated) heavyweight champion Tyson Fury – in his professional debut.

Xtreme Couture middleweight staple [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] defied the odds when he dethroned Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 in September to become champion.

[autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] solidified his status as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters outside the UFC when he finished Raufeon Stots and Sergio Pettis to win the Bellator bantamweight grand prix and divisional title.

Other Xtreme Couture standouts in 2023 included [autotag]Tatiana Suarez[/autotag], [autotag]Daniel Zellhuber[/autotag], [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag], [autotag]Farid Basharat[/autotag], [autotag]Javid Basharat[/autotag], and others who also had strong years. The training room’s population continues to grow with many other fighters on the verge of greatness.

That’s why Xtreme Couture is MMA Junkie’s 2023 Gym of the Year.

‘Touch of Gloves’: MMA figures show appreciation to those who shined brightest in 2023

What better time than the end of the year for UFC and MMA notables to reflect on who they appreciated most in 2023.

‘”As real as it gets” is the UFC’s slogan to describe just how realistic MMA combat can be. But before fighters get to any of the face punching, they typically share a moment of respect, a moment of peace that represents their mutual acknowledgment for the struggle to arrive at the moment: the touch of gloves.

Fighters might beat each other up for as much as 25 minutes, but the respect for one another and the sport seldom goes away and the martial arts spirt is always with them.

In this year’s edition of “Touch of Gloves,” we see that spirt come to life as fighters, coaches and more show appreciation to the people they think especially deserve a shoutout for what they did in 2023:

  • [autotag]Anthony Pettis[/autotag] on [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Ben Rothwell[/autotag] on [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag] on [autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Cain Velasquez[/autotag] on [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] on [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag]
  • And many more

Enjoy!

Manel Kape: Flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja’s consistency will beat Brandon Royval at UFC 296

Manel Kape sees Alexandre Pantoja beating Brandon Royval again when they fight for Pantoja’s flyweight title at UFC 296.

[autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] sees [autotag]Alexandre Pantoja[/autotag] beating [autotag]Brandon Royval[/autotag] again.

Flyweight champion Pantoja (26-5 MMA, 10-3 UFC) runs things back with Royval (15-6 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in the UFC 296 co-headliner on Dec. 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, which streams on pay-per-view following prelims expected on ESPN and ESPN+.

In their first fight in August 2021, Pantoja submitted Royval by second-round rear-naked choke. Kape, who’s UFC debut loss came to Pantoja, thinks Royval has an unorthodox fighting style which will cost him.

“Pantoja, definitely,” Kape said on the “Believe You Me” podcast. “No doubt. Pantoja’s more consistent than him, but Brandon Royval is unpredictable. This guy is not too technical, but he throws some weird stuff.

“Yes, he’s wild. I prefer a fight with someone that know how to fight than someone that don’t know how to fight. When I look at Brandon Royval, I see someone that doesn’t know how to fight.”

Kape (19-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) rematches Matheus Nicolau at a UFC Fight Night event on Jan. 13 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Nicolau edged out Kape in March 2021, and Kape is excited to rectify that wrong. Since losing to Pantoja and Nicolau back-to-back, Kape has won four straight.

“It’s a good fight to show that I won the first fight we had,” Kape said. “Clear. Right now I’m just a different fighter, and I’ve been showing that I’m a different level than most of the flyweight division. So, I’m going to be very motivated for this fight. We have some history so, it’s good to me.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Nov. 6-12)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Nov. 6-12.

MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month for September: An ultra-rare title fight draw

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from September 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from September 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for September.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

Nominees

Manel Kape still wants Kai Kara-France fight: ‘All this talk is not for nothing’

Manel Kape says he needs to settle his differences with Kai Kara-France.

[autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] says he needs to settle his differences with [autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag].

Kape (19-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) was booked to face Kara-France earlier this month at UFC 293 in Sydney, but Kara-France was forced out due to concussion symptoms. Kape faced newcomer Felipe Dos Santos instead, winning the bout by unanimous decision.

Kape hinted that a rebooking between him and Kara-France (24-11 MMA, 7-4 UFC) is in the works, but claims that the former interim title challenger isn’t signing the contract.

“All this talk is not for nothing,” Kape told MMA Junkie Radio. “We have to fight. I know he doesn’t want to fight because I’m still waiting two weeks for him to sign the contract – but still, no response. It’s going to be a good fight. Looking at the bigger picture, it’s a fight people right now want to see.

“All this talk, they want to see a big pay-per-view, and I think it’s going to be good business. He has to fight, but if he denies, we have Brandon Moreno. I don’t know if he’s scheduled with someone else, but we have Brandon Moreno out there.”

After beating Dos Santos, Kape used his mic time to callout Kara-France, accusing him of ducking him. Kara-France, who was in attendance, stood up and responded with his signature tongue thrust.

But Kape sensed fear in his reaction.

“I see his body language after my interview post-fight,” Kape said. “I see his body language and it was not the same. He just showed his ugly tongue, to show a fake something he does all the time. But after he showed the tongue, you could see his body language.

“If he really wanted to fight, he would have stepped in the cage. … If it was me and someone approached me like that, I don’t know what’s going to happen. I will step in the cage and I will murder this guy there. We’re going to fight in the same night. So he showed that he really doesn’t want to fight.”

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Manel Kape apologizes for homophobic slur during Kai Kara-France callout at UFC 293

Manel Kape called out Kai Kara-France after winning at UFC 293, but used anti-gay language that prompted an apology.

SYDNEY – From throwing water bottles at a press conference to winning a Fight of the Night battle, and then needing to issue an apology for homophobic language during his post-fight interview, [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] had a tumultuous fight week.

At the UFC 293 pre-fight press conference, Kape (19-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) didn’t give his opponent Felipe dos Santos much attention, and instead focused on the man he was originally slated to face at the event, Kai Kara-France. After withdrawing due to concussion symptoms, Kara-France showed up to the press conference in support of his City Kickboxing teammates on stage. Kape launched verbal attacks and a water bottle in his direction.

On fight night, Kape found himself in a war against the UFC newcomer dos Santos, who gave Kape a few scares over 15 minutes. Kape won by unanimous decision, and the exciting battle later earned the Fight of the Night award.

During his post-fight interview, Kape once again turned his attention to Kara-France, but unfortunately delivered a homophobic slur during his callout.

“Yeah, I am sorry for that,” Kape told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “It’s emotional, you know. During the fight, during the interview, we are all emotions. We say things that we didn’t want to say, but for (those) who feel bad about that, I apologize.”

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While Kape was sorry for his use of words, he maintained his vitriol for Kara-France’s withdrawal from their scheduled bout. “Starboy” said he is currently dealing with a “big” injury that may require surgery, but still showed up to compete for what he planned to be a title-eliminator bout against Kara-France.

“A win on this night was supposed to be to fight next for the title,” Kape said. “I just believe that they are a little bit hypocritical, because their team says they have to go into with injuries, they have to fight. They talked about Dricus (Du Plessis) about Israel Adesanya, he didn’t fight because of injuries. What happened to Kai Kara? We didn’t know really what happened, you know? So, this is my question to him.

“… I go into (fights with) injuries. This is the mentality of the champ, you know? I’m not going to waste the time of anyone, and I’m not going to waste my time.”

Kape, who currently holds the No. 12 spot in the latest MMA Junkie/USA TODAY Sports flyweight rankings, hopes Kara-France (No. 9) will sign to fight him again. He wants the fight to be for five rounds, but not a headliner of a Fight Night event. Kape wants it to take place on another pay-per-view event as originally planned.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 293.

UFC 293 post-event facts: Sean Strickland starts a new era at 185 pounds

The best facts to come out of UFC 293, which saw Sean Strickland force a changing of the guard with his title win over Israel Adesanya.

The UFC’s return to Sydney after nearly six years produced one of the most shocking main event results of the year as the middleweight title changed hands at Qudos Bank Arena.

[autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) closed out UFC 293 with a massive unanimous decision upset of [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] (24-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) to take the belt and force a reset at the top of the middleweight rankings.

For more on the numbers from the title bout, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 293.

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