Manel Kape found himself in a tougher than expected fight against the 22-year-old newcomer Felipe dos Santos tonight at UFC 293, but was still able to outstrike him to earn a unanimous decision victory.
Round One:
Calf kick from Dos Santos to start and Kape attempts to counter quickly without success.
Both exchange body kicks. Switch kick to the body from Dos Santos. Now a jumping knee from him.
Body kick from Kape, but eats a punch as he does so. However Kape then fires off a punch of his own and floors Dos Santos. Kape follows him to the mat, but they are soon back up on the feet.
Kape with another couple of clean punches down the pipe and Dos Santos tries to fire back without finding the mark.
Dos Santos with a jab. Front kick to the body from Kape, but Dos Santos catches that and works for a takedown. Kape immediately starts to get on top, then they rise to their feet.
Kape back on the offensive. Dos Santos with a nice right hand and Kape looks to get that back as he returns fire with a combination.
Jab for Dos Santos and a kick behind it. Spinning elbow attempt from Kape. Leg kick from Dos Santos. Now a front kick to the body from him. Kape tries to do the same, but Dos Santos catches it. Dos Santos in close and tries to throw a head kick, but Kape knocks him off-balance.
Back to striking range they go. Body kick and a right hand from Kape. Dos Santos lands a couple of nice punches too now though as this fight continues to heat up.
Round Two:
Dos Santos with frequent kicks to start the 2nd round. He continues to land to the legs, then snaps Kape’s head back with a clean punch.
Back to the leg kicks now. Another right hand gets through. Chopping leg kick from Kape practically knocks Dos Santos off his feet.
Kape steps in and lands a hard right hand. He comes in again and almost gets countered. Straight right lands for Dos Santos. Now a jab for Jape.
Leg kick from Dos Santos. He tries for a jumping knee, but Kape backs out of range. Front kick to the body from Dos Santos. He misses a spinning back elbow.
BOdy punch from Kape. He’s hanging back a bit now waiting to counter. Nice counter-left hook from Kape had Dos Santos hurt for a moment.
Another quick flurry of hooks from Kape. jab for Dos Santos. Now a front kick to the body from him and a spinning kick to thh body too.
Fast jab from Kape as he backs up. Series of fast hands from Kape and a good amount of them land. Dos Santos showing his toughness though to hang on in there and keep the fight competitive.
Round Three:
Front kick to the body from Dos Santos. He goes for a punch, but gets countered well by Kape. Left hand lands for Kape.
Dos Santos misses a few punches but lands the final one in the sequence. Punch lands for Kape. A couple of punches land for Dos Santos and Kape lands one of his own.
Fire fight at close range and Dos Santos lands a punch nicely, but then Kape blasts him with several hard punches of his own. Kape lands again and Dos Santos slipped to the mat for a moment.
One-two scores for Dos Santos. Body kick for him. Right hand for the newcomer. Back to the body. Counter punch connects for Kape.
Right hand from Kape. He tries to come forward but is greeted by a short flurry of punches from Dos Santos. Dos Santos misses a wheel kick attempt.
Jab for Kape. Kick for Dos Santos. Kape opts to work for a takedown and lands it. Dos Santos immediately throwing strikes from his back and continues to do so in the final seconds of the round.
Decision:
A good competitive fight here then with Dos Santos giving a great account of himself in his UFC debut, showing slick offense and a good chin, but in the end Kape was sharper on the counter and landing the heavier blows, leading him to a unanimous decision victory (30-27, 29-28 x2).
