"Kape owns you btw” - Muhammad Mokaev fires back at Kai Kara-France over fighting style criticism
Muhammad Mokaev has not taken kindly to Kai Kara-France's assessment of his fighting style. Mokaev is known for his dynamic grappling skillset, and has secured seven submission wins out of his 14 total MMA wins. However, the Kiwi believes that his style is too boring for mixed martial arts.
Kara-France is a striking-based fighter himself, which may have contributed to his critique of 'The Punisher'. The former interim title challenger pointed to Mokaev's fighting style as a major reason why the UFC opted not to re-sign the promising flyweight fighter after completing his contract in 2024.
'Don't Blink' discussed the former UFC fighter during a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, where he said:
"He's boring. This is fighting, it's not wrestling, it's not hugging. Don't pull someone's pants down in the middle of the fight, that's just desperate. It's just ugly. That's the fight game, if we were trying to wrestle and trying to do the bare minimum to try and win a fight, that's what I'd be training in... But no one pays all this money to see someone just dry-hump someone on the ground."
Mokaev came across Kara-France's comments on X and responded to the Kiwi, even pointing to his beef with fellow flyweight Manel Kape. He wrote:
"More finishes than you in the UFC bro. Only been in the UFC 2 years, had 7 fights and 4 finishes with 2 heavy injuries. You have been in the UFC 8 years. Now do the maths. Kape owns you btw."
Check out Muhammad Mokaev's response to Kai Kara-France below:
Dana White addresses UFC's decision not to re-sign Muhammad Mokaev
Fans and pundits were left stunned by UFC CEO Dana White's announcement that undefeated flyweight contender Muhammad Mokaev would not be re-signed by the promotion following his UFC 304 win over Manel Kape.
At just 24 years old, 'The Punisher' was one of the division's best prospects. However, White alluded to some behind-the-scenes issues with Mokaev as the reason he was not offered a new deal, which the flyweight confirmed to be true.
Shortly after UFC 304, White appeared in front of the media, where he elaborated on the promotion's decision regarding Mokaev. He said:
"This is an opportunity, to be here and to perform in front of the entire world. He's just a guy that did everything wrong and p*ssed these guys off. I wasn't involved with any of the stuff that happened with him, but the matchmakers and Hunter [Campbell] were, and they weren't happy with him."
Check out Dana White's comments about Muhammad Mokaev below: (12:25):