Is Manel Kape next for a title shot against Joshua Van? Well, after the Portuguese powerhouse cracked Brandon Royval’s iron chin at UFC Vegas 112, fans have jumped on his bandwagon. In short, they all want to witness a banger clash. And now Daniel Cormier has also jumped on board, echoing the fans’ voice with his take on this matchup.

After ‘Starboy’ defeated ‘Rawdog’, there was only one thing on his mind: A shot at the 125 lbs. gold. Keeping that goal in mind, Kape didn’t hesitate to call out the newly crowned champ in the Octagon interview. Unsurprisingly, Joshua Van showed his Houston heart and immediately accepted the challenge on X. So, for now, they have a verbal agreement. And, if you ask ‘DC’, he believes Kape should hold his place as the next challenger for his record-breaking performance at Apex. 

Clean Finish vs Controversy Shapes the Flyweight Title Picture

“If you’re not ready to proclaim him as the number one contender today, then you’re holding on to something more than the result. Because once again, I’m talking to you about the person who has more knockouts than anyone in UFC history in this weight class. He’s tied with only one person. I didn’t want to do this video to make a case for Manel. I just think that it’s fair, if you put him in a situation, that you should consider him right alongside Tatsuro Taira.” Daniel Cormer said on his YouTube channel. 

The former two-division champ definitely makes a point here. Manel Kape tied the most knockouts in flyweight history with Joseph Benavidez by flatlining five divisional fighters. But that’s not all. The Portuguese knockout machine also made his finish count even more impressive, as he earned 19 out of 22 victories by stoppage. Pure violence. Still, there’s one roadblock that might hurt him. It’s the Japanese sensation Tatsuro Taira. 

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At UFC 323, Taira also had an awesome finish against former flyweight champ Brandon Moreno. However, his win quickly ended in controversy after the referee stopped the fight. The fans and experts believed ‘The Assassin Baby’ could’ve continued fighting, as he didn’t show concerning damage. But the fact remains that the Japanese has a win over Moreno and now sits in one of the prime contenders’ positions. Yet, ‘DC’ believes Kape’s having a more convincing win should get him the next title shot over Taira.

“Hey, Tatsuro Taira beat a former world champion. There’s a lot of stock in that win. But there was still, ‘Hey, they stopped the fight early.’ There were some reasons where you can go, ‘Brandon Moreno kept fighting.’ Nobody said that about Brandon Royval and Manel Kape after what we saw last night.” Daniel Cormier added. 

Again, the former two-division champ made a solid point that Kape flatlining Royval in the first round, without any controversy, puts him above Taira. However, ‘Starboy’ himself showed proficiency in MMA math to prove that he’s more deserving to fight for the championship. 

‘Starboy’ uses mathematical intelligence to dismiss Tatsuro Taira’s title claim  

If Manel Kape’s UFC Vegas 112 knockout wasn’t impressive on its own, there’s also the fact that he knocked out Brandon Royval, who already has wins over Brandon Moreno and Tatsuro Taira. 

So, according to the MMA math, the Portuguese superstar should be standing next against Joshua Van, based on how he defeated ‘Rawdog’ at his possible best version. Mentioning this fact, Kape also trolled the Japanese sensation, completely dismissing his title fight chances. 

“If someone believe this, they don’t know nothing about maths. Because 2+2 isn’t 6, right? It’s four. And, Brandon Royval just beat Tatsuro Taira. He broke him, mental, physical. I did Brandon Royval in one round.”    

Manel Kape is known for trash-talking his opponent, that too without pulling punches. But here, he chose to speak facts. Tatsuro Taira is definitely a solid fighter and could become a champion down the line. However, Royval beat him pretty soundly last year. So, even though he has a controversial victory over Brandon Moreno, he might still need to wait a little to get the 125 lbs. title shot.

That said, as the Portuguese knockout machine has been getting votes to face Joshua Van next by fans and experts, would Dana White hold his 2026 Japan plans? Let us know in the comments section below.