WATCH: Israel Adesanya and 125-pound Manel Kape exchange slurs and ALMOST fight as Portuguese fighter throws bottle at teammate Kai Kara-France
The UFC 293 pre fight press conference saw Manel Kape and Israel Adesanya clashing heads. Kape was supposed to face Adesanya's teammate at UFC 293.
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Israel Adesanya and Manel Kape (Image via Imago)
Manel Kape and Israel Adesanya exchanged words as the Portuguese fighter threw a water bottle at Kai Kara-France. Kara-France sat amongst the crowd when the incident happened. Kape and Kara-France were scheduled to fight at UFC 293, but Kara-France withdrew due to concussion.
The security restrained Kape and Adesanya during their exchange. Tai Tuivasa was seated between the two fighters and was seen playfully enjoying the moment. Tuivasa and Sean Strickland then called for the argument to stop. “Bam Bam” playfully hollered at Alexander Volkov after the incident, inciting a funny reaction from the crowd. Moreover, during the incident, Sean Strickland told the middleweight champion not to be an a**hole as it was his duty to be one.
The press conference entertained fans from the first minute till the last, with the middleweight champion and his challenger exchanging a war of words. Tai Tuivasa had some funny moments among the fighters on the stage. Moreover, the Manel Kape incident was a welcome surprise for the fans. Everyone expected the press conference to be a Sean Strickland show.
The loss of Kai Kara-France for the event made the card even weaker. Kape has vowed that he wants “Don’t Blink” after his bout with Felipe dos Santos. Kara-France is on a two-fight skid, albeit against top flyweights in Amir Albazi and Brandon Moreno.
Manel Kape wants Kai Kara-France after UFC 293
The animosity between Manel Kape and Kai Kara-France remained evident at the pre-fight press conference of UFC 293. Even though Kara-France was not on stage, that did not stop Kape from throwing a bottle at him. The altercation forced Israel Adesanya to defend his teammate at City Kickboxing.
Kai Kara-France is the third fighter to pull out from a scheduled bout with Manel Kape. Alex Perez pulled out from UFC on ESPN 43, and Deiveson Figueiredo pulled out from UFC 290. Kape is a former bantamweight champion at Rizin and is currently on a three-fight win streak.
With the flyweight title changing rapidly, Kara-France and Kape are not far away from a title shot. Manel Kape would be looking to make quick work of his Felipe dos Santos and looking for a quick turnaround. He is one or two fights away from a title shot.
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Nidhin Shibu
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