Mokaev is not allowed to win the UFC championship. The Dagestani “survived” from his native division
Sergey Sorokin March 27, 2024, 20:15 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
The undefeated fighter already challenged his next opponent.
Lately, mixed martial arts fans have had big questions about the UFC matchup. It is not entirely clear how exactly some of the contenders for the championship title are determined. Movsar Evloev, who continues to reap victories, will not wait for his opportunity, even if he does not perform particularly brilliantly. And Dana White hinted that the Russian will not have the opportunity to fight for the belt in the near future. And now Muhammad Mokaev faces the same problem. And now he is willing to take a very risky step to “remove” the title of the promotion directorate.
We are outraged along with Mokaev:
UFC closes the flyweight division. The level of absurdity in the division is already beyond the limits
Mokaev really wanted to become the youngest champion in UFC history. And even he did everything possible for it. He entered the best promotion on the planet in 2022 and began to perform with a very busy schedule: he managed to fight up to six fights. Muhammad won for everyone: he performed beautiful submissions and ended his fights four times ahead of schedule. And in some battles I had to demonstrate incredible character. For example, the fight with Jafell Filho almost ended with a serious leg injury, after which he had to recover for a long time.
It seemed like the promotion really had a great opportunity to reward Mokaev for his efforts. But instead, the organization made an absurd decision. The current UFC flyweight champion is Alexander Pantoja. He himself was going to fight against the British Dagestanis, as he openly stated.
Pantoji’s only condition was that Mokaev defeat Pérez. Muhammad won and… will be forced to watch the next champion of his division from the sidelines. Pantoji’s opponent was number 10 in the ranking: Steve Erceg. The announcement of this confrontation provoked a storm of criticism. The Australian spent only one year in the UFC, is below Mokaev and managed to score only three victories, two of them by decision.
Muhammad Mokayev
Photo: Jeff Bottari/Getty Images
Apparently, the decision by Dana White and his partners infuriated Mokaev. So much so that Muhammad is no longer going to wait for his opportunity at flyweight. It’s worth noting that the split has been criticized for quite some time. It is considered one of the least interesting and is accused of stagnation. And after such decisions the situation can only get worse. Therefore, Mokaev declared that he was willing to move to a new division and immediately challenged the champion.
Muhammad Mokayev
Undefeated British UFC fighter of Dagestan origin
“100%: I think our fight with Sean O’Malley will happen. I can compete at bantamweight. My usual weight is about 70 kg and I fight in the up to 57 kg category, but it seems to me that I will do much better in the bantamweight division. It will be more difficult for me, but the title will be mine. My career started at flyweight. I’ll finish at flyweight and then I’ll call Sean Shelby and say, “Give me a contract in the bantamweight division.”
It’s worth noting that Mokaev could really benefit from moving up to the bantamweight division. The last title fight between O’Malley and Marlon Vera showed that guys have major problems with wrestling. But Muhammad in this sense is able to surprise almost all representatives of the bantamweight division. Therefore, this measure could be very beneficial for a Briton of Dagestani origin. The big question is how exactly Mokaev is going to overcome Umar Nurmagomedov, who is also closing in on his title shot.
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It’s worth noting that moving to a new division can be a big mistake. It won’t be easy to get a title card right away. And, perhaps, to begin with, Muhammad will be given a challenger fight. But defeat in him can be fatal. Then, in the near future, we can forget about the title fight in the bantamweight division, the competition is too great. But returning to flyweight after a loss won’t be easy. Then there will also be several fights before the title fight. In fact, everything will have to start from scratch. I wonder if Mokaev will dare to take such a risky step.
