Updated June 21, 2026, 5:28 p.m. ET
The UFC delivered another solid event on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 279 from the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, where seven of the 12 bouts on the card ended inside the distance.
That included the main event, where Manel Kape (23-7 MMA, 8-3 UFC) made himself undeniable for a flyweight championship opportunity with a record-setting finish of former Bellator and Rizin FF titleholder Kyoji Horiguchi (36-6 MMA, 9-2 UFC).
Kape wasn’t the only one who produced history on card, though. For more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s UFC Fight Night 279 post-event facts.
Event stats
The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payout for the event totaled $168,000.
Debuting fighters went 3-2 at the event.
Kape, Murtazali Magomedov, Vinicius Oliveira and Andre Fili earned $100,000 UFC Fight Night 279 fight-night bonuses. Four fighters earned $25,000 finish bonuses.
The UFC sold VIP tickets to fans for UFC Fight Night 279, but the promotion did not make public the total number of tickets sold or the gate.
Betting favorites went 8-4 on the card.
Betting favorites improved to 8-9 in UFC headliners this year. Three main events in 2026 have had even odds.
Total fight time for the 12-bout card was 1:53:40.
Manel Kape def. Kyoji Horiguchi
Kape’s four-fight UFC winning streak at flyweight is the second-longest active streak in the division behind Joshua Van (seven).
Kape has earned 20 of his 23 career victories by stoppage. That includes six of his eight UFC wins.
Kape’s six stoppage victories in UFC flyweight competition are tied for fourth-most in divisional history behind Alexandre Pantoja (eight), Deiveson Figueiredo (seven) and Demetrious Johnson (seven).
Kape’s six knockout victories in UFC flyweight competition are most in divisional history.
Kape’s four-fight knockout streak in UFC flyweight competition is the longest in divisional history.
Kape’s eight knockdowns landed in UFC flyweight competition are tied with Kai Kara-France for second-most in divisional history behind Figueiredo (11).
Horiguchi fell to 2-1 since he returned to the UFC for a second stint in November 2025.
Horiguchi has suffered four of his six career losses by stoppage.
Navajo Stirling def. Ion Cutelaba
Navajo Stirling’s (10-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) five-fight UFC winning streak at light heavyweight is the second-longest active streak in the division behind Carlos Ulberg (10).
Stirling has earned six of his 10 career victories by stoppage.
Stirling has earned all six of his career stoppage victories by knockout.
Ion Cutelaba (20-12-1 MMA, 9-11-1 UFC) has suffered 10 of his 12 career losses by stoppage.
Christian Rodriguez def. Hyder Amil
Christian Rodriguez (13-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) improved to 3-3 since he moved up to the UFC featherweight division in March 2024.
Rodriguez has earned eight of his 13 career victories by stoppage.
Rodriguez has earned both of his UFC stoppage victories by submission.
Hyder Amil (11-3 MMA, 3-3 UFC) has suffered three consecutive losses after starting his career 11-1.
Amil has suffered two of his three career losses by stoppage.
Amil suffered the first submission loss of his career.
Murtazali Magomedov def. Melsik Baghdasaryan
Murtazali Magomedov (11-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has earned all 11 of his career victories by stoppage.
Magomedov earned the fourth Twister submission victory in UFC history. Chan Sung Jung, Bryce Mitchell and Da’Mon Blackshear also accomplished the feat.
Melsik Baghdasaryan (8-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) has suffered all four of his career losses by stoppage.
Baghdasaryan has suffered three of his four career stoppage losses by submission.
Vinicius Oliveira def. Andre Fili
Vinicius Oliveira (24-4 MMA, 5-1 UFC) was successful in his featherweight debut.
Oliveira has earned 19 of his 24 career victories by stoppage.
Oliveira has earned both of his UFC stoppage victories by knockout.
Andre Fili (25-14 MMA, 13-13 UFC) has suffered eight of his 14 career losses by stoppage.
Kevin Borjas def. Andre Lima
Kevin Borjas (11-5 MMA, 2-4 UFC) has earned both of his UFC victories by decision.
Andre Lima (11-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) had his 11-fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.
Bia Mesquita def. Melissa Mullins
Bia Mesquita (8-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) has earned all eight of her career victories by stoppage.
Melissa Mullins (7-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) suffered the first stoppage loss of her career with a first-round submission defeat.
Mitch Raposo def. Allan Nascimento
Mitch Raposo (11-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) has earned both of his UFC victories by decision.
Allan Nascimento (22-7 MMA, 4-2 UFC) has suffered all seven of his career losses by decision.
Gaston Bolanos def. Michael Aswell Jr.
Michael Aswell Jr. (11-5 MMA, 1-3 UFC) has suffered all five of his career losses by decision.
Levan Chokheli def. Leon Shahbazyan
Levan Chokheli (15-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has earned 12 of his 15 career victories by stoppage. He’s finished all of those wins by knockout.
Leon Shahbazyan (12-5 MMA, 0-1 UFC) has suffered all five of his career losses by knockout.
Luana Santos def. Karol Rosa
Luana Santos’ (11-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) three-fight UFC winning streak at women’s bantamweight is the third-longest active streak in the division behind Ailin Perez (six) and Joselyne Edwards (five).
Karol Rosa (19-8 MMA, 8-5 UFC) has alternated wins and losses over her past 10 fights.
Rosa has suffered all five of her UFC losses by decision.
Shane Collins def. Otari Tanzilovi
Otari Tanzilovi (10-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) has suffered both of his career losses by decision.
UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on X @MJCflipdascript.
