UFC Vegas 119 Faceoffs: Kape Shows Respect, Stirling Towers Over Cutelaba

Manel Kape kept things civil at Friday's UFC Vegas 119 faceoffs, standing nose-to-nose with Kyoji Horiguchi in a respectful pre-fight staredown ahead of their flyweight rematch Saturday on Paramount+.

The headliners showed none of the heat that sometimes boils over at ceremonial weigh-ins, according to MMA Mania. Both fighters made weight earlier in the day at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, setting up what the promotion is billing as a critical bout in the 125-pound division.

Cutelaba Faces Massive Reach Disadvantage Against Stirling

In the co-main event, Ion Cutelaba will try to halt the undefeated run of City Kickboxing heavyweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">light heavyweight Navajo Stirling, who brings a pronounced height and reach edge to the 205-pound matchup. Cutelaba acknowledged the size gap but promised an aggressive approach regardless. "I can tell you one thing, I'm not going to be moving back," he said at Thursday's media day. "I don't care who's in front of me. I'm gonna go out there, and as they say, I am willing to die inside that Octagon to get a victory."

Stirling, who trains under Eugene Bareman in Auckland, has never tasted defeat as a pro and represents one of the gym's latest prospects at 205 pounds. Cutelaba, meanwhile, is looking to snap a two-fight skid and prove he still has something left against the division's younger wave.

UFC Vegas 119 streams live Saturday night on Paramount+ from the UFC Apex.

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• MMA Mania — UFC Vegas 119 face offs, staredowns video: Manel Kape behaves, Navajo Stirling is tall AF