UFC

Exclusive: Manel Kape shares UFC goals after debut is postponed due to injury

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Former RIZIN champion Manel Kape was to fight at UFC 252 but saw his debut get postponed

Manel Kape is eyeing a return to action sometime in October after his UFC debut was postponed.

The former RIZIN star was to face Rogerio Bontorin but his opponent had to withdraw from the clash. However, the UFC had a couple of other opponents in mind for Kape but the 26-year-old suffered an ankle injury and is aiming for a return later this year.

Kape was speaking to MMA Unhinged and spoke about what his goals were in the UFC:

“We are in the UFC, everybody’s good, you know. Everybody is professional, everybody is training hard but we have different goals. My goal is to be a champion.”

Deiveson Figueiredo of Brazil celebrates after defeating Joseph Benavidez in their UFC flyweight championship bout during the UFC Fight Night event (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

He was also searching for a top-five fight and claimed that others might be in MMA to have a decent lifestyle but that’s not the case for him:

“My goal is to be a champion. If I don’t want to do all the things, I don’t stay here and fight MMA.”

However, Kape wasn’t just looking to become a champion, he also wanted to do it with style. The 26-year-old revealed that he wants to be a smart fighter too:

“I want to be the best of the best.

“My real goal in this sport is to show everybody that I am the most smart fighter in the world. If I can show my skill with my body language.”

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Better than Figueiredo

Kape also claimed that he was coming for Deiveson Figueiredo’s belt and he believed that a title clash would take place next year.

Figueiredo defeated Joseph Benavidez to win the vacant Flyweight title, but Kape believed he had better cardio than the champion.

Deiveson Figueiredo secures a rear choke submission against Joseph Benavidez in their UFC flyweight championship bout. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

The 26-year-old claimed his cardio would increase with each round with Figueiredo could not do five rounds. Kape further said that he was more “complete” than the new champion and that the cardio aspect was a huge difference between the two.

This is an exclusive interview from MMA Unhinged. For more exclusive interviews and content please follow the link.

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Saiyed Adeem Karim

Ditching a corporate job to follow a dream isn't easy, but when football comes calling, who can say no? Been following the beautiful game since 1998. Liverpool addict, F1 fanatic!

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