Manel Kape and Asu Almabayev were set to meet in the main event of UFC Vegas 103 on Saturday, in a key fight for the flyweight division.
Just not as key as it might have been.
Originally, #6 ranked Kape was paired up with the #1 ranked Brandon Royval, in a fight many felt had title implications. With Royval hurt, instead it was Almabayev stepping in, while ranked #8 overall in the weight class.
While there might have been an argument for Manel “Starboy” Kape getting a title shot off a win over the top-ranked flyweight in the UFC, especially given his status as a former RIZIN champ, beating the #8-ranked fighter in the weight class was another matter. Given the lack of options for champ Alexandre Pantoja, a decisive win, especially a finish, might still earn Kape the opportunity – but it was far from a sure thing.
UFC Vegas 103 was rocked by fight cancellations during weigh-in day, losing two bouts, and moved forward with a 10-fight card overall. The top five make up the main card, and we’ve got our picks ready! See below for who we think comes out on top on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
| Writer / Fight | Barlow vs. Patterson | Amil vs. Gomis | Ribovics vs. Haqparast | Brundage vs. Marquez | Kape vs. Almabayev |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Behunin (22-7) |  |  |  |  |  |
| Eddie Law (19-10) | |  | | |  |
| Brett Cagle (19-10) | | | | | |
| Chris Prawdzik (18-11) | | | | | |
| Patrick McCorry (17-12) |  | | | | |
| Mathis Desjardins (17-12) | | | | | |
| Jay Anderson (16-13) | | | | | |
First off, let’s get these out of the way: there were two unanimous picks on the UFC Vegas 103 card. Those would be Cody Brundage, who is a clean sweep, with every writer responding expecting him to overcome the “Cuban Missile Crisis” that is Julian Marquez in the night’s co-main event, and Esteban Ribovics. While Ribovics has an experienced opponent in Nasrat Haqparast, he’s been a hot hand of late, and is coming off a big win at Noche UFC (UFC 306) last year.
The main event saw all but two writers side with Manel Kape, while the main card opener had all but one select Danny Barlow to get past Sam Patterson. Hyder Amil, meanwhile, gets a slight edge against William Gomis.
