Manel Kape on champion Joshua Van: "This fight is going to be too easy"
The flyweight contender hints at a quick knockout modelled on Anderson Silva's famous win over Forrest Griffin. The fight has not been booked yet.
Archive image · Photo: Carolinerepolho / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Manel Kape has predicted a quick defeat for flyweight champion Joshua Van. In an interview with Daniel Cormier, the contender compared a potential title fight to Anderson Silva's legendary knockout of Forrest Griffin at UFC 101: he is faster and would end the fight early. "I know the power that I possess, I know the skill I possess," Kape said. "When I say this fight is going to be too easy, it's going to be too easy."
Kape is regarded as one of the leading contenders for the next title shot. He most recently beat Japan's Kyoji Horiguchi by third-round TKO – and even rates him above the champion: "If it was Van against Kyoji, Kyoji would put him to sleep in the first round."
Van last defended the title in September at UFC 331, beating Alexandre Pantoja by unanimous decision in a rematch – his second successful defence. No date has been set for his next defence, and the UFC has not announced a fight with Kape.