Matchups & bookings
3 stories on this topic, newest first.
Kape stops Horiguchi in round three, demands flyweight title shot
Manel Kape was losing the first two rounds of the UFC Vegas 119 main event before flooring Kyoji Horiguchi with a right hook and finishing him with ground-and-pound at 2:42 of round three, avenging a 2017 RIZIN submission loss. The win was Kape's fourth straight and earned a $100,000 Performance of the Night bonus. Horiguchi (36-6-1) had his seven-fight win streak snapped and apologized to fans, vowing to return. Kape says he has done enough to face flyweight champion Joshua Van.
Why it matters: Kape has now beaten the gatekeepers and elite alike, and his finish forces the UFC's hand at 125 pounds, where Van, Pantoja and a returning Horiguchi all complicate the contender picture.
- UFC Vegas 119 results: Biggest winners, losers from 'Kape vs. Horiguchi' last night (MMA Mania)
- Manel Kape thinks he earned UFC title shot after revenge KO over Kyoji Horguchi: 'It was enough' (BJPenn.com)
- 'I got spectacularly knocked out'… Kyoji Horiguchi reacts to Manel Kape loss at UFC Vegas 119 (Bloody Elbow)
- Kyoji Horiguchi releases statement following UFC Vegas 119 knockout loss (MMA Mania)
- UFC Vegas 119 results: Sooo … About last night | Horiguchi vs. Kape 2 (MMA Mania)
Du Plessis vs. Usman, a clash of ex-champions, books UFC Oklahoma City
The UFC announced at Vegas 119 that Dricus du Plessis (23-3) will make his first appearance since losing the middleweight title to Khamzat Chimaev, facing Kamaru Usman (21-4) in the five-round UFC Oklahoma City headliner at Paycom Center on July 18. Former welterweight champ Usman moves up to middleweight for the bout; he hasn't fought since outpointing Joaquin Buckley last June. The card, UFC Fight Night 281, also features Jared Cannonier vs. Christian Leroy Duncan and Kevin Holland vs. Jacobe Smith.
Why it matters: A win puts either veteran back in the middleweight title mix, giving the division a fresh contender behind champion Chimaev while testing whether Usman's late-career move up has any staying power.
- Former champions to collide in UFC Oklahoma City main event (Sherdog)
- Dricus du Plessis vs Kamaru Usman is finally official with date and venue confirmed at UFC Vegas 119 (Bloody Elbow)
- Dricus Du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman Headlines UFC Oklahoma City (Cageside Press)
- Du Plessis to return vs. Usman at UFC Oklahoma City (theScore)
Gaethje won't retire, rules out immediate Topuria rematch
Days after his fourth-round corner-stoppage win over Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250 made him undisputed lightweight champion, Justin Gaethje told the JRE MMA Show he plans to keep fighting and flatly rejected an immediate Topuria rematch, saying 'he quit twice.' Gaethje pointed to Arman Tsarukyan as the likely next contender, but added he wants greater purses and equity in the company. Tsarukyan, who won millions betting on Gaethje, fired back after the champ refused his gift of a truck.
Why it matters: The lightweight title picture now hinges on Gaethje's contract demands and a brewing grudge with Tsarukyan, the long-standing No. 1 contender he seems destined to fight next.