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, but MMA Fighting confirmed with officials that the bout has now been cancelled.
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) — cancelled*
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 has been cancelled
