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Muhammad Mokaev was, at one point, a high-potential prospect in the UFC. Unfortunately, he parted ways with the promotion under unfavorable circumstances and has now reflected on his contentious exit. In a recent interview with MMA Fighting's Guilherme Cruz, 'The Punisher' touched on several topics.
Among those topics were his UFC exit and whether he could return to the promotion. The latter bit, though, isn't entirely up to him. Dana White and co. will have to reconsider their stance on him. Nevertheless, Mokaev believes that it is only a matter of him proving his worth to the UFC before he gets re-signed. He said:
"I did some mistakes. Whatever happened, listen we are humans. I don't know. I believe the matchmakers and everybody in life at the age of 22, 23, under so much pressure, so much pressure I had at my age, maybe they would do more mistakes or maybe less. We're all humans, so I learned from it. So, I don't think that's the issue now. I think I just need to show my hands, my striking, and we'll get back to talking with them."
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Check out Muhammad Mokaev reflecting on his UFC exit:
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It's worth noting that Mokaev wasn't cut. Instead, the UFC opted against renewing his contract, despite him holding a professional record of 13-0 (1). At the time, Mokaev was regarded as a future title contender at flyweight, but a listless win over Manel Kape at UFC 304 and reportedly problematic conduct caused him to fall out of favor with the promotion.
Muhammad Mokaev's last UFC fight was embroiled in controversy
UFC 304 marked Muhammad Mokaev's final appearance in the promotion. Part of the UFC's reasoning for parting ways with him was Mokaev's conduct prior to the bout, which featured his bitter rival Manel Kape. The pair had a heated feud, complete with melees and ambushes.
The two men even had to be held apart at the official face-off and their respective octagon introductions. Unfortunately, the fight itself fell flat, with both men hesitant to engage, drawing tremendous criticism, with even UFC CEO Dana White regarding it poorly.
