Rogerio Bontorin vs. Manel Kape full fight preview | UFC 275

*** Rogerio Bontorin encountered kidney issues during an unsuccessful weight cut and was sent to a nearby hospital, canceling his 125-pound showdown with Kape (FULL DETAILS) ***

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Flyweight contenders Rogerio Bontorin and Manel Kape will throw down this weekend (Sat., June 11, 2022) at UFC 275 inside Singapore Indoor Arena in Kallang, Singapore.

Bontorin might be the best fighter in the world currently riding a four-fight winless streak. Of course, one of these bouts is an overturned victory due to a failed drug test, and the rest of the defeats came to elite opposition. All the same, the Brazilian enters this high-profile contest vs. a really tough opponent in must-win territory. Kape is likely still best known for his stint in Rizin, where he did capture the Flyweight crown. His UFC career started off a bit slow and with some controversy, but he’s since righted the ship with a pair of brilliant knockout wins. He did have some issues with M3 metabolite pulsing in April, but hopefully that’s behind him.

Let’s take a closer look at the keys to victory for each man:

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Rogerio Bontorin

Record: 16-4 (2)
Key Wins: Raulian Paiva (UFC Fight Night 156), Magomed Bibulatov (UFC Fight Night 144), Gustavo Gabriel Silva (Contenders Series Brazil 2018)
Key Losses: Kai Kara-France (UFC 259), Brandon Royval (UFC Vegas 46), Ray Borg (UFC Fight Night 157)
Keys To Victory: Bontorin is a major physical talent. Strong, fast, and well-conditioned, the Brazilian loves to force a chaotic pace, and he frequently looks to elevate his opponents and land big slams.

Wrestling is absolutely the path to victory here for Bontorin. Kape is the superior technical striker by a pretty considerable measure, and he’s got real knockout power. If Bontorin tries to force a frantic pace and hangs around in front of Kape for too long, he’s going to get blasted.

Instead, Bontorin has to trade just long enough to open an opportunity to change levels. Unlike many past Kape opponents, Bontorin can really match his foe’s strength, which should be a major benefit for finishing these takedowns. Kape will surely scramble up, but that just plays into Bontorin’s hands of making this an exhausting, scramble-y fight.

Once the wrestling starts, never let it stop!

Manel Kape

Record: 17-6
Key Wins: Kai Asakura (Rizin 20), Zhalgas Zhumagulov (UFC Vegas 44), Takeya Mizugaki (Rizin 18), Ode Osbourne (UFC 265)
Key Losses: Kyoji Horiguchi (Rizin World Grand Prix 2017), Alexandre Pantoja (UFC Vegas 18), Matheus Nicolau (UFC Vegas 21)
Keys To Victory: Kape is an extremely explosive striker. He tends to circle and wait on his back foot, keeping his eyes open for that perfect opportunity to sent his opponent to sleep. His style can result in lulls in action, but he’s also stopped 11 of his wins via knockout.

Fortunately, Bontorin will absolutely not allow Kape to sleepwalk through any section of this fight. The Brazilian is likely to be in his face from the first bell, which provides both danger and opportunity for “Starboy.”

In general, the more strikes Kape can throw up the middle, the better. Bontorin largely attacks on straight lines, both with his combinations and wrestling. If Kape can interrupt that offense with snap kicks, uppercuts, or jump knees, it can really result in some massive connections.

Kape also has to be looking for opportunities to land on the break. Bontorin doesn’t really lock down his opponents, he scrambles with them, meaning there will be chances to break away and immediately fire.

Bottom Line

The Flyweight title picture is in a strange place.

There’s an interim title bout between Brandon Moreno and Kai Kara-France on the horizon, but the mere existence of that bout may have irritated Deiveson Figueiredo to the point of dropping his belt and heading to 135 lbs. Either way, outside of those three names mentioned and Alexandre Pantoja, there are not many names in the Flyweight title mix.

This is Manel Kape’s opportunity to really join that mix. If he’s victorious here, that makes it three wins in a row, and he’d knock off a Top 10 contender to cap off that streak. That could earn him a rematch with Pantoja or another Top Five opponent like Brandon Royval depending on how everything shakes out.

As for Bontorin, the man just really needs a win. He may be Top 10, but UFC has cut highly ranked and exciting Flyweights for far less than five-fight winless streaks.

At UFC 275, Rogerio Bontorin and Manel Kape will go to war. Which man remains standing when the dust settles?

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