"Brandon Royval was coming off a fight of the year contender with Van (who wouldn't want to see that rematch?) and has a win over Taira. But the man everyone had their eye on was Manel Kape. The man they call "Starboy" made short work of the former title challenger, knocking him out in just 3:18. Royval had only been finished with strikes once before and that was due to an injury; Kape is the first to separate him from his consciousness."
"It might've taken longer than anticipated when he first came into the UFC, but the 32-year-old has finally delivered on the hype and should be fighting for the title next. I know I said the same thing about Tatsuro Taira last week, but Kape's win over Royval eclipses Taira's over Moreno. Whether it's in the next couple months or after a Van vs Pantoja rematch, Manel Kape's next fight has to be for a title."
UFC Vegas 112 at the Apex produced several meaningful fights, including Yaroslav Amosov's delayed UFC debut and a promising performance from prospect Kevin Vallejos. The main event was a flyweight title eliminator that reshaped the division's landscape. Manel Kape knocked out former title challenger Brandon Royval in 3:18, marking the first time Royval was stopped by strikes. Kape, age 32, appears to have fulfilled his early potential and deserves a title shot. The flyweight picture remains unsettled after Joshua Van's recent win and Pantoja's injured arm, creating opportunities for Van, Taira, Horiguchi, and Kape.
Read at Cageside Press
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]