After knocking out Brandon Royval last year, Manel Kape was in line for the flyweight title shot against Joshua Van. However, the UFC ended up choosing the Japanese sensation Tatsuro Taira to co-headline the UFC 327 card against the Burmese-American fighter. But as fans have been buzzing about the flyweight clash in Miami, Kape had to address fake news about his next fight.

As the flyweight championship would be on the line at Kayseya Center Arena, a social media account rumored that Manel Kape would fight red-hot contender Lone’er Kavanaugh at a Fight Night event. For a while, the post took everyone by surprise, as the account cited Kape as the source. Yet, moments later, ‘Star-Boy’ ended up busting the myth.

“BREAKING FIGHT NEWS: Manel Kape vs Lone’er Kavanaugh is CONFIRMED for a Fight Night Event This Summer!! [SOURCE @ManelKape],” Upfront MMA posted on X. In reply, Kape wrote, “Big fake news. ‘Source Manel Kape? 🤦🏾‍♂️.’”

For context, the UFC social media world is filled with ‘entertainment’ accounts that usually stir the pot with parody posts, and Upfront MMA is one of them. Before Kape vs Kavanaugh, the social media account also spread a rumor claiming that Jorge Masvidal and Nick Diaz would fight at the UFC White House event, which, of course, people quickly debunked. But it wouldn’t be a stretch to say the fight looked really believable, especially because of the current flyweight scenario.

At present, Manel Kape is definitely at the doorstep of getting a title shot. However, since the fight against Joshua Van didn’t happen, there was a chance the Portuguese powerhouse could have ended up facing another contender, and Lone’er Kavanaugh made complete sense. Why? It’s because the Englishman stunned everyone after beating former champ Brandon Moreno at the UFC Mexico Fight Night event, and fans wondered whether he could do it against Kape.

Moreover, Lone’er also sits at the number 6 ranking in the 125 lbs division, and that’s another reason many thought the fight was possible. Now, as the clash appears to be off the table, at least for now, it seems Kape is still next to face the winner of Van vs Taira, which will go down on April 11. How? Well, the champ himself revealed some details.

The UFC initially pitched Joshua Van to face Manel Kape

Although fans received the news of Joshua Van defending the flyweight championship against Tatsuro Taira, it would not be a stretch to say that many wanted to see the clash against Manel Kape. The stylistic matchup is definitely one reason, but fans also witnessed the rivalry that had been brewing between them. Now, it appears that not only the fans, but UFC executives also wanted that fight to happen.

According to the 125 lbs kingpin Joshua Van, UFC executive Sean Shelby contacted him to fight Manel Kape at UFC 324 after the Amanda Nunes vs Kayla Harrison fight fell out. But later, the talks fizzled out for UFC 327 in March too, and Taira ended up getting the title shot in Miami.

“When I was in Cali, they called me on short notice because Kayla (Harrison) vs. Amanda Nunes fell off,” Van said on the UFC Fight Night 267 post-fight show. “They offered me two weeks’ notice and I immediately said yes. I guess they called Manel and he said he can’t, so I said, ‘Ok, cool.’

He called me out for March 7 and Mick (Maynard) and my managers said, ‘Who you want: Manel or Taira for March 7?’ I said Manel, and I said yes on my part, and I don’t know what happened. A couple of days later, they said Taira,” he added.

So, as the Burmese-American fighter revealed that Kape was indeed in the mix before Taira, it may happen that the UFC actually lines up the Portuguese powerhouse to face the champion next, after it all goes down at UFC 327. However, if Alexandre Pantoja ends up returning around that time, would he get the title shot? Let us know in the comments section below.