Manel Kape defeated Kyoji Horiguchi with a right hook that ended the contest, coming after Horiguchi had controlled much of the action with his left hand and takedown work. Kape switched his stance from southpaw to orthodox immediately before landing the decisive counter, catching Horiguchi in a momentary lapse. Despite the loss, Horiguchi demonstrated he remains a high-level flyweight, and Kape is considered deserving of a title shot given the rarity of his knockout power at 125 pounds.
Manel Kape delivered a stunning late finish against Kyoji Horiguchi on June 21, dropping the Japanese veteran with a right hook after switching from southpaw to orthodox in the contest's final moments to secure a flyweight victory.
Kape, ranked sixth in the flyweight division, improved his record to 23-7 with the finish. The 32-year-old from Angola, who trains out of Xtreme Couture, has long been regarded as one of the rare knockout threats at 125 pounds, and his numbers reflect the danger he carries. He lands 4.68 significant strikes per minute at 55 percent accuracy, outstanding output for the flyweight class. Standing five-foot-five with a 68-inch reach, the southpaw used an unexpected orthodox switch to catch Horiguchi off guard with the decisive counter.
Horiguchi, for his part, had done much of the heavy lifting before the finish. The 35-year-old Japanese fighter, now 36-6, controlled large portions of the fight with his left hand and takedown pressure, averaging 1.67 takedowns per 15 minutes across his career. His five-foot-four frame and compact 63-inch reach make him a difficult puzzle, and on this night he presented real problems before the right hook changed everything.
Why it matters
- Kape's knockout power is genuinely rare at flyweight, and this finish strengthens a title-shot argument for the ranked contender.
- Horiguchi's ability to control the majority of the fight underlines that he remains a legitimate force in the division despite the result.
- A southpaw-to-orthodox stance switch as the finishing trigger adds a technical wrinkle that opposing camps will need to account for.
