Manel Kape Declares Himself Japan’s MMA King: “People ask me to put my hand on the belly of pregnant women”
Manel Kape is brimming with confidence and has made big claims following his Round 1 TKO win over Brandon Royval earlier tonight at UFC Vegas 112.
After securing three back-to-back knockout victories in the UFC, Kape now wants a title shot and has already called out newly minted flyweight champion Joshua Van.
After capping off UFC’s ESPN era with a highlight-reel finish, ‘Starboy’ appeared in an interview with ESPN. During the sit-down, the Angolan-born Portuguese fighter opined that he stands above Kyoji Horiguchi, Kai Asakura, and Tatsuro Taira in the Japanese market:
“If you want to go to a new market, Japan, I’m the king there. Tatsuro Taira is Japanese, but he’s nobody there. Horiguchi isn’t a big star there. If you see my fight with Asakura, the crowd was chanting my name. Put 100 people in line and you’ll see who the Japanese fans would take pictures with and ask for autographs. They’re going to choose me. I’m a legend there. I’m a star. I’m a samurai. People ask me to put my hand on the belly of pregnant women. That’s what they ask me.”
Check out Manel Kape’s comments below:
Manel Kape thinks Joshua Van is ‘already scared’
After calling out Joshua Van during the octagon interview with Michael Bisping at UFC Vegas 112, Manel Kape was later asked about his thoughts on Van not reacting to the call-out. During the post-fight presser, ‘Starboy’ said:
“He’s [Joshua Van] is scared already. He’s scared. He knows he didn’t say anything because he is about to go down. And I’m coming hot. 2026, I’m coming very hot. I’m coming with a lot of investments, a lot of sponsors, I will be more ready, I will be more sharp, I’ll be very focused… I will eat, sleep, and think about him every day. Till I take that gold. And he is gonna sleep and dream about me. I’m going to be the worst nightmare he’s going to have in his life.”
Check out Manel Kape’s comments below:
