Flyweights Kai Kara-France, Manel Kape Agree to Bout at UFC 293 in Sydney

Kai Kara-France will square off against Manel Kape in a flyweight clash at UFC 293.

ESPN was first to report the pairing, which is close to being finalized. UFC 293 takes place at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia on Sept. 9. While a headliner has not been announced for the card, reigning middleweight champ Israel Adesanya is expected to defend his title at the event.

Kara-France last appeared in the UFC on ESPN 46 main event, where he suffered a split-decision loss to Amir Albazi on June 3. It was the second consecutive defeat for the City Kickboxing representative, who suffered a third-round TKO defeat to Brandon Moreno in an interim title bout at UFC 277. “Don’t Blink” is is 7-4 in UFC competition, with wins over the likes of Askar Askarov, Cody Garbrandt and Rogerio Bontorin.

A former Rizin bantamweight champion, Kape has won three straight contests after dropping his first two Octagon appearances. Most recently, “Starboy” took a three-round verdict over David Dvorak at UFC Fight Night 216 this past December.