Manel Kape defeated Kyoji Horiguchi by knockout in the third round, extending his finishing streak to four consecutive knockouts in the flyweight division and setting a new UFC record with five knockouts in the weight class. Horiguchi controlled the first two rounds with his speed and counter-punching but was stopped after lingering at close range and getting caught by Kape, who switched to an orthodox stance before landing the decisive shot. The win cements Kape as a legitimate title contender in the flyweight division.
Manel Kape extended his remarkable finishing run with a third-round knockout of Kyoji Horiguchi on June 21, 2026, recording his fourth consecutive KO finish and setting a new UFC record with five knockouts in the flyweight division.
The 32-year-old Angolan, fighting out of Xtreme Couture, entered the bout ranked sixth in the flyweight division and has now made an undeniable case for a title shot. Standing five-foot-five with a 68-inch reach, Kape fights primarily out of a southpaw stance but showed the tactical intelligence to switch to orthodox before landing the decisive finishing blow. His aggressive output — 4.68 significant strikes landed per minute at a 55 percent accuracy rate — makes him one of the most dangerous punchers in the division.
Horiguchi, the 35-year-old Japanese veteran from American Top Team, carried a 36-6 record into the fight and made his experience count through the first two rounds, using his speed and counter-punching to control the pace. At 1.67 takedowns per 15 minutes, the orthodox-stance fighter is also a credible grappling threat, but the third round proved his undoing when he lingered at close range and was caught cleanly by Kape's switch-stance attack.
Why it matters
- Kape's five UFC flyweight knockouts is a new divisional record, underlining a finishing ability that few at 125 pounds can match.
- Four consecutive KO wins puts him in a strong position to push for a flyweight title shot in his next outing.
- The loss snaps Horiguchi's momentum at 35 and raises questions about where the former champion fits in an increasingly deep division.
