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No. 6-ranked flyweight contender Manel Kape is the winner of four straight with two knockouts and was probably a lock for the next 125-pound title shot, assuming “Starboy” got past Brazilian bruiser Matheus Nicolau in the UFC Vegas 84 co-main event this weekend at APEX in Las Vegas.

Now … maybe not.

Kape (badly) missed weight for his Nicolau rematch, tipping the scale at 129.5 pounds. That’s 3.5 pounds over the acceptable limit after factoring in the one-pound allowance afforded by Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) in all non-title fights. Kape was fined 25 percent (payable to Nicolau) and the fight will continue on as planned.

For complete UFC Vegas 84 weigh ins results and video click here.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 84 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 84 news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive here. For the updated and finalized “Ankalaev vs. Walker 2” fight card and ESPN+ line up click here.

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Manel Kape wasn’t close to making weight for his first fight of 2024.

The flyweight contender weighed in at 129.5 pounds – 3.5 pounds over the division limit for a non-title fight – at Friday’s official weigh-ins for UFC Vegas 84. Kape is scheduled to rematch Matheus Nicolau in Saturday’s co-main event.

Nicolau successfully weighed in at 126 pounds. The bout will proceed at a catchweight with Kape forfeiting 25 percent of his purse as penalty, according to a report by MMA Junkie.

The two first fought in March 2021 at UFC Vegas 21, where Nicolau defeated Kape via split decision. This is the second time in Kape’s career that he has missed weight. He came in three pounds over the flyweight limit for a bout with Ode Osbourne in August 2021.

In better news, Magomed Ankalaev and Johnny Walker are set to put their rivalry in the rearview.

For the second time in three months, Ankalaev and Walker successfully made weight for a fight against one another, though this time they meet in a main event clash. Ankalaev weighed in at 204.5 pounds at Friday’s official weigh-ins, while Walker tipped the scales at 205.5 pounds.

The light heavyweight contenders previously fought at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi, where they went to a no-contest after Ankalaev struck Walker with an illegal knee and it was ruled that Walker was unable to continue.

Twenty-three of the twenty-four fighters competing Saturday successfully made weight, including veterans Jim Miller and Andrei Arlovski, who respectively compete in their 43rd and 41st UFC fights.

See full UFC Vegas 84 weigh-in results below.

Main Card (ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET)

Magomed Ankalaev (204.5) vs. Johnny Walker (205.5)

Matheus Nicolau (126) vs. Manel Kape (129.5)*

Jim Miller (155.5) vs. Gabriel Benitez (155)

Ricky Simon (136) vs. Mario Bautista (135.5)

Phil Hawes (185) vs. Brunno Ferreira (185)

Preliminary Card (ESPN+ at 4 p.m. ET)

Andrei Arlovski (247) vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta (261.5)

Matthew Semelsberger (170.5) vs. Preston Parsons (170.5)

Marcus McGhee (135.5) vs. Gaston Bolanos (135.5)

Farid Basharat (136) vs. Taylor Lapilus (136)

Westin Wilson (145.5) vs. Jean Silva (145.5)

Nikolas Motta (155.5) vs. Tom Nolan (155)

Joshua Van (125.5) vs. Felipe Bunes (125.5)

*Kape missed the flyweight limit. The bout will proceed at a catchweight with Kape forfeiting 25 percent of his purse as penalty

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Former welterweight title challenger, Darren Till has welcomed the possibility of a future rematch with fellow former UFC championship chaser, Jorge Masvidal in the future – claiming a re-run with the Floridian is a “big-money” clash.

Till, a veteran of the UFC, departed the Dana White-led promotion of his own volition back in February of last year, amid a slew of consecutive losses and struggles with persistent knee injuries.

Making his most recent combat sports walk at UFC 282 in December of the year prior, Till suffered his third consecutive defeat in the form of an eventual third round neck crank submission loss to incoming UFC 297 headliner and middleweight title chaser, Dricus du Plessis.

Darren Till eyes a future rematch with Jorge Masvidal

Linked with a long-anticipated fight with fellow former welterweight contender, Mike Perry in a potential BKFC (Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship) bout or a professional boxing venture, Till claims a matchup against former UFC foe, Masvidal is also firmly on his immediate radar.

“I think that whole scene now, (Jorge) Masvidal and Nate (Diaz) are fighting, Jake Paul, Tommy (Fury), KSI, (Mike) Perry – that whole thing comes together,’ Darren Till told Boxing Social during a recent interview. “Even (Tyron) Woodley’s in it and stuff like that. Any one of them, I feel like it’s a big-money fight, especially with my name and their name – all the sh*t before it and the fight. I know I can beat them all, as well.”

“Masvidal, yeah, the rematch with Masvidal, so get one back on him,” Darren Till explained. “They’re the fights. Let’s say Perry at the top of this [list] – Perry’s number one – and they’re all just below Perry. So if I can’t make the Perry fight happen, I’d love to make a fight with one of them happen.”

Fighting former BMF titleholder, Masvidal atop a UFC Fight Night London card back in 2019, Liverpool striker, Till suffered a devastating second round KO loss to the Miami veteran.

Expected to make his return to combat sports in March, Masvidal is currently in talks to fight the aforenoted, Diaz in a boxing match re-run – however, the Stockton native has offered his services in the form of a UFC 300 headliner in April. 

Would you like to see UFC veterans, Darren Till and Jorge Masvidal fight again?

LowKickMMA.com

The athletes competing on Saturday’s UFC Vegas 84 fight card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas officially weighed in on Friday.  The fight card is headlined by a clash between two Top 10 ranked light heavyweights.  Third ranked Magomed Ankalaev takes on seventh ranked Johnny Walker in a rematch in the headlining bout.  

The two first fought at UFC 294 in October.  The match ended in a no contest after Ankalaev accidentally landed an illegal knee that rendered Walker unable to continue.  

UFC Vegas 84 Official Weigh-in Results

MAIN CARD (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)

• Magomed Ankalaev (204.5) Johnny Walker (205.5)
• Manel Kape () Matheus Nicolau ()
• Gabriel Benitez (155) Jim Miller (155.5)
• Mario Bautista (135.5) Ricky Simon (136)
• Brunno Ferreira (185) Phil Hawes (185)

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 4 p.m. ET)

• Andrei Arlovski () Waldo Cortes-Acosta ()
• Preston Parsons (170.5) Matthew Semelsberger (170.5)
• Gaston Bolanos (135.5) Marcus McGhee (135.5)
• Farid Basharat () Taylor Lapilus (136)
• Jean Silva () Westin Wilson (145.5)
• Tom Nolan (155) Nikolas Motta ()
• Felipe Bunes (125.5) Joshua Van (125.5)

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Despite the event being three months away, UFC 300 is the talk of the MMA world right now. With lofty expectations, every fight announcement seems to be met with criticism. But is that actually fair with only five fights made official, and still upwards of 10 more to be announced?

On an all-new edition of Heck of a Morning, MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck discusses the reactions to UFC 300 thus far, and why managing expectations is the most important thing fans can do right now. Additionally, listener questions include Nate Diaz’s tweet teasing a return at UFC 300, why that likely won’t happen, the current pay-per-view slate for the UFC, Brandon Moreno vs. Brandon Royval 2 now set for UFC Mexico City, what could headline the UFC’s debut in Saudi Arabia, Aljamain Sterling’s featherweight outlook, and much more.

You can listen live to Heck of a Morning Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 10 a.m. ET on the MMA Fighting Twitter Spaces.

If you miss it live, audio-only versions of the podcast can be found below, on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, and wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.

Happy New Year!

Yes, we’re all well into the 2024 groove at this point, but most of the MMA world is just starting to get back into full swing. The UFC machine gets rolling again on Saturday after a much-needed break and several other smaller promotions have already opened the cage doors.

Let’s kick off our look at the regional and international scene with a submission that is sure to go down as one of the strangest of the year.

(Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs and submissions, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.)

Shanna Gomez vs. Mitzi Merry

I’m not entirely sure how Shanna Gomez set this up and, be honest, neither are you.

In the second round of Gomez’s fight with Mitzi Merry at a Peak Fighting event in Shawnee, Okla., the fighters found themselves in a tangle on the mat, with Merry in an awkward and uncomfortable but seemingly harmless bottom position. It’s nothing we haven’t seen before, except that Gomez put an unusual amount of attention on hooking Merry’s right leg under her arm.

At first, you’d think this was a clear choice of control over offense, but Gomez freed her left hand and suddenly she had a firm grip of Merry’s foot. With no possible way for Merry to escape, Gomez cranked on the foot to create a textbook tap-or-snap situation. Thankfully, there was a tap.

The commentary identified the finish as a reverse toe hold into a heel hook. I don’t know about all that, what I can say is Gomez currently owns the Best Submission of 2024 (I know, I know).

Murad Khalidov vs. Baga Agaev

From a Nashe Delo event in Moscow:

Baga Agaev’s face, meet Murad Khalidov’s right hand of doom.

As regular readers of Missed Fists know, Nashe Delo is synonymous with combat sports wackiness, and as far as I can tell this highlight comes from a match conducted under boxing rules but in a cage with MMA gloves. That formula all but promises a knockout. Promise kept.

Lance Martinez vs. Andrew Tran

If you’re seeking a more traditional MMA face-planting, look no further than Lights Out Xtreme Fighting 13 (free replay available on YouTube).

While Lance Martinez’s finish wasn’t as explosive as Khalidov’s, it was scarier in the way he just walked Andrew Tran down. A right hand rocked Tran and two accurate, looping punches later, it was indeed “lights out” for him.

Mathieu Rakotondrazanany vs. Dawoud Som

There will be plenty more head kicks to come in 2024, but Mathieu Rakotondrazanany can be proud of this effort he unleashed at The King of Fighters 3 in Marseille, France.

It’s not just the quality of the impact that makes this stand out, but the quality of the set-up. We’ve seen plenty of fighters fire a kick to the body first to get their opponent thinking, so in that Rakotondrazanany isn’t unique. It’s the unbelievably slick jab-to-head kick combination that had me gasping.

A lightning-fast jab caused Dawoud Som’s hand to shift ever so slightly in a direction to cover his face, leaving him open to a shin to the side of his head. That’s masterful stuff.

Cam Teague vs. CJ Henny

Let’s make a quick (and we do mean quick) stop in Mobile, Ala., where Cam Teague wiped CJ Henny in just 10 seconds.

You might say that Teague showed that Henny wasn’t in his league. That’s a bar.

Eminence Combat Championships 13 is available for free replay on YouTube.

If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on Twitter — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.

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