And so the ESPN era ends, not with a bang, but… well, you know the rest.
In fairness, the UFC’s last dane with “the worldwide leader in sports” could end in spectacular fashion as we have hungry contenders
Brandon Royval and Manel Kape squaring off in Saturday’s flyweight main event. These two have been on each other’s radars for a while and rarely fail to deliver on fight night, so you can’t ask for much more from a headliner as the UFC closes out its 2025 campaign and prepares to move on to the Paramount era.
The rest of the card is a classic smorgasbord. You have veteran featherweight Giga Chikadze taking on fast-rising prospect Kevin Vallejos in the co-main event, grappling ace Marcus Buchecha getting a second chance to make a first impression, King Green in a matchup that sprang up out of nowhere, Amanda Lemos and Gillian Robertson in a preliminary bout that could determine the next challenger for strawweight champion Mackenzie Dern, and UFC lifer Neil Magny taking on former Bellator welterweight titleholder Yaroslav Amosov in an intriguing matchup that’s also buried on the prelims for some reason.
Oh, and there are three heavyweight fights on this card somehow.
It was a good run.
What: UFC Vegas 112
Where: UFC APEX in Las Vegas
When: Saturday, Dec. 13. The seven-fight preliminary card begins at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and ESPN+, followed by a six-fight main card at 10 p.m. ET also on ESPN2 and ESPN+.
(Numbers in parentheses indicate standing in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings)
Brandon Royval (3) vs. Manel Kape (6)
OK, Manel Kape. I believe in you.
I’ve been skeptical of Kape ever since he came over from RIZIN. A brilliant striker with serious in-cage charisma, it’s easy to see why the fanbase would be so enamored with Kape. There simply aren’t a lot of 125ers with his knockout power and when he’s on his best behavior, he looks like someone who should have gold around his waist. Historically, Kape his been his own worst enemy and that could play out once more Saturday.
Even with 25 minutes to work with, Kape can’t afford to be overly patient and give rounds away to Brandon Royval, Because Royval will be foaming at the mouth as soon as the bell rings (if only there were a phrase to describe such a reaction). That’s actually good news for Kape, who typically thrives when his opponents bring the action to him. But again, he has to curb his tendency to goof around in the cage, otherwise he could find himself down on the scorecards and needing a finish.
Royval will be playing with fire the whole fight, just the way he likes it, and that’s probably why I’m going with Kape. I just think he’ll force one clash too many, at which point Kape will have sussed out a tell or two and then start landing strikes with consistency. As resilient as Royval is, Kape has the firepower to put him down and make a statement that he’s worthy of a title shot sooner rather than later.
Pick: Kape
Giga Chikadze vs. Kevin Vallejos
Giga Chikadze, if you are being set up as a stepping stone, there are worse fates than losing to Kevin Vallejos, one of the featherweight division’s brightest talents. “El Chino” is 13 years Chikadze’s junior and has all the makings of a future champion, especially if he can add Chikadze’s respected name to his résumé.
On the feet, Chikadze can still make any fight competitive. He’s always had outstanding technical skill and if he has time to figure out a weakness, he’ll exploit it to the fullest and find a finish. That’s a luxury Vallejos likely won’t give him. The Argentinian standout will come out fast and Chikadze will have to react accordingly or drown.
A veteran test like Chikadze is exactly what Vallejos needs right now, because an impressive performance will keep the hype train rolling while a loss or even an uninspiring decision win will tell us a lot about where he stands among his talented peers. I have Vallejos scoring a knockout, finding that finishing touch Chikadze’s past two opponents couldn’t, and likely ending up officially ranked when Tuesday rolls around.
Pick: Vallejos
Cesar Almeida vs. Cezary Oleksiejczuk
Matchmakers are banking on a finish in this fight to liven up the main card and I’m confident Cesar Almeida and Cezary Oleksiejczuk deliver.
Oleksiejczuk is a fun prospect coming out of the Contender Series. He faced good competition rising up the ranks in Europe and has an A-level skill in his boxing, which I always like to see. He’s tall and uses his reach well, he has fast hands, and he loves throwing combinations capped off by power shots. This should be a fascinating chess match as Almeida typically has stout striking defense.
Almeida loves to walk his opponents down while sizing them up for a precision shot, something that will be difficult to do against the longer Oleksiejczuk. Inactivity could cost Almeida if this goes to the cards, but since I’m predicting a finish, that shouldn’t matter.
There’s still a lot we need to learn about Oleksiejczuk, and Almeida could seriously test his chin. If Oleksiejczuk consistently beats him to the punch, though, a knockout is there for the taking, even against the historically sturdy Almeida.
Pick: Oleksiejczuk
Melquizael Costa vs. Morgan Charriere
What a fantastic featherweight banger to close the books on the division for 2025.
Let’s take a second to admire Melquizael Costa and Morgan Charriere’s recent work. Costa has quietly won five straight fights at 145 pounds (there’s an odd loss in a lightweight bout mixed in there against Steve Garcia if you want to be technical) and knocked off some tough competition, including Julian Erosa, Christian Rodriguez, and Andre Fili.
Charriere hasn’t found the same consistency, going just 3-2 in the UFC so far, but all three of his wins have earned Performance of the Night bonuses and he added on a Fight of the Night award in a competitive loss to Chepe Mariscal. “The Last Pirate” was touted as one of the more exciting additions to the UFC’s featherweight roster when he signed in 2023 and he hasn’t disappointed. He’ll obviously look to keep this one standing in the hopes of scoring another knockout win.
It’s Costa’s ability to mix things up that should swing a close fight in his favor. I’ll stop short of calling a submission win for Costa, but he should record a few takedowns and threaten enough on the ground to eke out a decision.
Pick: Costa
Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Marcus Buchecha
This is either going to be an important bounce-back performance for Marcus Buchecha or another exercise in futility.
The famed grappling star’s UFC debut ended in a decision loss to Martin Buday and played out exactly as you’d expect it to if you were predicting a setback for Buchecha. Once his primary method of victory was foiled, Buchecha didn’t have a lot of options left, and the time just ticked away on him until it was time for the scorecards to spell his doom.
Against my better judgment, I’m picking Buchecha to have a moment of redemption and not only take Kennedy Nzechukwu to the ground, but actually do something with his superior positions this time. If he can’t submit Nzechukwu early, this could get very, very, very ugly. Because unlike Buday, Nzechukwu won’t drag Buchecha to a decision. He’ll probably turn his lights out.
That said, Buchecha, first-round submission.
Pick: Buchecha
King Green vs. Lance Gibson Jr.
It’s a late entry, but the award for most random UFC matchup of 2025 goes to…
Seriously, how did we get here? King Green, veteran of 51 pro fights, 26 in the UFC, taking on Lance Gibson Jr., veteran of 10 pro fights, in a matchup that wasn’t put together until this week. I understand the plan was always for Green to be on this card and they just needed to find an opponent, but Gibson is truly a curveball.
That’s not to say the 30-year-old Canadian can’t pull off an upset. Gibson is a modern lightweight, well-rounded and with good cardio, and well-equipped to deal with Green’s seasoned striking. He loves utilizing kicks from range, which he’ll need if he has any hopes of throwing Green off of his rhythm.
Because even at 39, when Green gets cooking, he’s still as dangerous as they come at 155 pounds. The man has seen it all in the cage, so outside of the age difference, I’m struggling to see how Gibson gets the better of him. True, Gibson beat a guy with over 60 pro bouts just two fights ago, but he was 19-42! How do you go from that to impressing in your UFC debut on less than a week’s notice?
Gibson has a future in the UFC and win over Green would jumpstart it considerably, but I’m going with the vet here.
Pick: Green
Gillian Robertson (10) def. Amanda Lemos (5)
Joanderson Brito def. Isaac Thomson
Neil Magny def. Yaroslav Amosov (15)
Steven Asplund def. Sean Sharaf
Melissa Croden def. Luana Santos
Allen Frye def. Guilherme Pat
Jamey-Lyn Horth def. Tereza Bleda
