Top UFC flyweight Manel Kape found BJJ “very gay” when he first started

It’s safe to say Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) doesn’t come naturally to top UFC flyweight contender Manel Kape.

Angola’s Kape, who is now the UFC’s No. 6-ranked flyweight contender, got his start in combat sports as a boxer. As he transitioned into MMA, however, he needed to learn the grappling components of the sport, including BJJ.

He admits he struggled with the grappling art when he first started learning it. In fact, as he told former UFC and ONE Championship flyweight king Demetrious Johnson this week, he found BJJ “very gay” when he first encountered it.

“It was challenging for me,” Kape told Johnson on MightyCast. “I went to jiu jitsu, because I think jiu jitsu is bullsh*t. I would say ‘this is very gay, gay style,’ you know? [My coaches and training partners] would tell me ‘this is not gay.’ It was pretty weird.”

See the full interview between the two flyweight stars below:

UFC title shot incoming for Manel Kape?

Manel Kape is currently gearing up for a fight with Kazakhstan’s Asu Almabayev, the division’s No. 8-ranked contender. The fight will headline this Saturday’s UFC Vegas 103 card in the promotion’s Apex facility. “Starboy” was originally matched up with former title challenger Brandon Royval on the card, but that plan fell through when Royval suffered an injury.

Regardless, a victory for Kape could be career-changing. He is 5-1 in his last six fights, and if he wins impressively, will be one of the top contenders for reigning champion Alexandre Pantoja, who many consider the best champion the division has seen since Johnson left the UFC for ONE Championship in 2018.

His opponent Almabayev will also be in reach of a UFC flyweight title shot in victory. Heading into the fight with Kape, the Kazakh has won 17-straight fights, including four in the Octagon. He also also won nine fights by submission, so Kape’s jiu jitsu will need to be on point — even if he finds it “gay.”