UFC fighter Manel Kape is content with his victory over Asu Almabayev and has shut down claims that an eye poke influenced the result.
The incident occurred in the final round when Kape’s finger scraped Almabayev’s eye, but the referee failed to notice it. Initially, the move seemed unintentional, but after Almabayev posted a graphic image of his injured eye on social media days later, the damage appeared severe. Almabayev pleaded foul, but Kape disagreed.
“He posted this [photo]—people will always talk,” Kape told MMA Fighting. “If you watch my fight against Bruno Silva, the last kick wasn’t a low blow. Watching it in slow motion, it hit his liver. You can see his reaction. But people kept saying ‘low blow’ like I wasn’t winning the fight, like I wasn’t picking them apart.
“Against Asu, his eye was already damaged from the first punch. If you watch the fight carefully, in the first round, when I landed that punch, his eye was immediately messed up.”
Kape explained that he had been fighting with an open hand, but Almabayev kept circling the cage during exchanges. As Kape continued pressing forward, looking to land final strikes before the fight ended, the accidental eye poke occurred.
“Yes, maybe that was my fault because he was running a lot, and I tried to catch him as he was moving,” Kape admitted. “I extended my hand to slap him. The second one caught him like that. But it wasn’t deep enough to stop him from fighting because even after it happened, I let him go for two or three seconds, and he was fine. He even tried to go for a takedown.”
Kape insisted that the eye poke did not determine the outcome of the fight.
“It wasn’t the eye poke that decided the fight,” Kape said. “I was already beating him. People just look for excuses because it’s me. Some fighters get a lot of hate—special fighters, champions—they always get criticized. I know I’m one of those fighters. But when you win, when you become a champion, suddenly people want to be on your side.
“For a day or two, people will hate you, then they’ll love you—it’s always the same cycle, making excuses. But the eye poke wasn’t what won me the fight. I was picking him apart. Honestly, it was one of the easiest fights I’ve had. I told him it was going to be a long night, but they weren’t ready to believe that. They just want to find excuses for my great performance. Everybody hates great fighters.”
Despite the controversy, Kape insists he holds no grudge against Almabayev. However, he believes Almabayev should take responsibility for his own performance after being dominated in a one-sided fight.
“It was a bad move for him to post about the eye poke,” Kape said. “What’s his intention? The fight is already over. It wasn’t anything dramatic. He shouldn’t have posted it because he was running around the cage the whole time.
“If you don’t want to get hit, cover yourself—but don’t run. That’s more embarrassing than the eye poke. Everyone chooses how they want to lose. I’m never going to lose like a coward, but that’s life.”
