SYDNEY – Israel Adesanya came to his teammate Kai Kara-France’s defense after Manel Kape went off on him.
Kape (18-6 MMA, 3-2 UFC) was originally scheduled to face Kara-France (24-11 MMA, 7-4 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC 293 event at Qudos Bank Arena, but Kara-France was forced out due to a concussion suffered in training. Kape will face newcomer Felipe dos Santos (7-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) instead.
Kara-France was in attendance during Thursday’s UFC 293 press conference, and Kape had some harsh words towards him, which prompted middleweight champion Adesanya to intervene. Kape threw water bottles at Kara-France which kicked off the altercation.