Kape and Brandon Royval competed at the UFC Apex last Saturday in hopes of moving one step closer to a flyweight title. Kape was ultimately the one to make quite a statement. He scored a first-round knockout victory, which earned him a ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus.
Kape also believes he has a shot at Van’s UFC Flyweight Championship. During his post-fight interview with UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping, Kape was warned for “The Fearless” (via MMA Junkie).
“You took my place, now you have my belt,” Kape said. “If I didn’t break my feet in July, I’d be a champion right now. Now, baby, listen very carefully: I’m here. Your daddy. Your daddy’s going to take your diapers.”
“No one can deny my belt,” Kape said. “I’m the best here. I’m the best.”
During the UFC Vegas 112 post-fight press conference, Kape even said Van was “scared” of him. It didn’t take long for the 24-year-old champion to respond to his X account.
Houston TX @ManelKape
Let’s implement it! Talking is cheap @ufc— Joshua Van (@JoshuaVanBT) December 14, 2025
“Houston TX, @ManelKape. Let’s do it! Talk is cheap,” Van wrote.
Kape is now on a three-fight winning streak. “Starboy” is 7-1 in his last eight appearances. During that time he has defeated Royval, Asu Almabayev and Bruno Silva, to name a few.
The 125-pound division is heating up following Alexandre Pantoja’s injury at UFC 323, which abruptly ended his title streak. Besides Kape, another name that has emerged as a potential title contender is Tatsuro Taira. He recently defeated former champion Brandon Moreno via TKO in the second round.
Speaking to reporters, Kape pointed out that Taira lost to Royval and he believes the calculation would make no sense if the Japanese star got a shot at the title before him.
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