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Muhammad Mokaev recently expressed his desire for a showdown with reigning ONE Championship flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson amid the ongoing turmoil surrounding his UFC contract. 'The Punisher' has officially been dropped from the promotion after his victory over Manel Kape at UFC 304 last month.
Despite securing his seventh victory in the UFC and maintaining an undefeated record, Dana White announced that Mokaev would not be re-signed. The UFC CEO clarified that the decision to release Mokaev wasn’t based on his fighting style but rather, stemmed from a series of out-of-competition issues.
In the midst of uncertainty surrounding his future, Mokaev expressed his excitement over a potential fight with 'Mighty Mouse.' In an interview with a Russian outlet, which was later reposted by Home of Fight, he said:
"I think it is the best fight we can make right now. Because I think 'Mighty Mouse' is better than [Alexandre] Pantoja. Everybody knows it. He's a legend. I would beat Pantoja for sure, but for the fight with 'Mighty Mouse', I would prepare really hard. I would prepare for the fight with Pantoja like any other fight." [h/t- Home of Fight]
'The Punisher' went on to say that while a bout with one of the greatest mixed martial artists would be a significant boost to his career, he remains steadfast in his pursuit of becoming the UFC champion and that he won't abandon that dream.
Check out Muhammad Mokaev's comments below:
Mokaev, who had previously volunteered to fight for free in hopes of securing a UFC return, hinted at the fact that he had signed with a promotion on X. He took to X and in a cryptic tweet, wrote:
"Signed"
Check out Muhamad Mokaev's tweet here:
Dana White reiterates the reasoning behind the decision to release Muhammad Mokaev from the UFC
During the post-event press conference after a recent episode of Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS), the UFC CEO was questioned about the MMA promotion's decision to part ways with Muhammad Mokaev.
White emphasized that external challenges from Mokaev's side had left the matchmakers and Hunter Campbell so dissatisfied with him that they ultimately decided to release him from the UFC. He said:
"It is what it is. I always say this: This is an opportunity to be here and perform in front of the entire world. He’s just a guy that did everything wrong and pissed these guys off. I wasn’t involved in any of the stuff that happened with him, but you know, the matchmakers and Hunter were, and they weren’t happy with him. They weren’t happy with the way he acted. They weren’t happy with a lot of things he did and said. I guess you can look back now and regret it, but you did it."
Check out Dana White's comments below (12:30):
