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Rising UFC prospect Muhammad Mokaev has slammed Paddy Pimblett for having a “lower mentality.”
This past Saturday, Mokaev took on Charles Johnson in the fourth fight of the prelims at UFC London. He recorded 12 takedowns on a record attempt of 26 in the three-round contest.
Mokaev secured a dominant victory over Johnson to extend his undefeated record to eight wins, with two of his latest ones coming under the UFC banner.
After a lackluster start to the show, Molly McCann energized the O2 Arena with another spinning back elbow finish, mirroring her knockout of the year contender over Luana Carolina from March against Hannah Goldy on the second fight of the main card.
Pimblett proved to be the night’s star once again for the promotion’s return to the UK for a second time this year. He stole the show with an impressive performance against Jordan Leavitt, whom he out grappled on his way to a submission win in front of a boisterous crowd.
One man who expressed disappointment with Pimblett’s flashy antics during the build-up to the event and beyond was “The Punisher.” Mokaev bashed the 27-year-old Scouser at the post-fight press conference stating that he wasn’t a fan of Pimblett and insinuated that he wasn’t a real man.
In an appearance on “The MMA Hour” with Ariel Helwani, Mokaev explained the origins of his dispute with “The Baddy.”
He shared that their beef began online after Pimblett took issue with Mokaev representing England considering his Dagestani roots.
“I don’t like this guy,” Mokaev said. “I don’t want to talk about him too much because even back in 2019, he said on Twitter, ‘this guy shouldn’t represent England. He’s not born here. He shouldn’t lift the British flag, he’s not born here.’
“He talked bad about Georgian people, talked about immigrants not being welcome to the UK, and stuff like this. And people support this bullsh*t guy, this is wrong.
“I was on Twitter, my coach and my team, nobody likes this guy so he moves to stuff like nationality, race, and all this that’s like lower mentality.
“When you can’t say something facts, something serious about somebody, you move to these facts like touching somebody’s race or stuff like this when you have nothing to say about somebody.”
Mokaev Is Down To Fight Pimblett at 145 Pounds
Being a traditional flyweight, Mokaev is two weight classes under Pimblett’s preferred choice of competing at lightweight.
He suggested a catchweight bout between the pair at 145 lbs, where he’ll have to fight at a weight 20 lb heavier than his usual, whereas Pimblett would need to shed an extra 10 lbs to hit the mark.
“I’ll fight him at 145 lbs,” he added. “If UFC makes this weight fight, I’ll fight him at 145 without cutting my weight. I’ll fight him and people don’t believe me but I’ll do whatever I want with him.”
Mokaev believes that he’ll be able to take on Pimblett if the promotion makes the matchup, and won’t even need a weight cut considering he walks around at 145 lbs.
Mokaev Says Pimblett Will Never Be Champion
During the UFC London post-fight presser, Mokaev took the opportunity to slam Pimblett for mooning the cameras at Friday’s official weigh-ins. The 21-year-old Manchester representative claimed that Pimblett would never be a champion.
“There’s so many guys that don’t get a lot of media attention that should get it,” Mokaev said. “Example, Arnold Allen. It’s Leon Edwards. It’s Tom Aspinall. Nathaniel Wood.
“These guys are amazing, good examples. I don’t disrespect the media, but you give a bulls*** guy like Paddy Pimblett attention.”
He insisted the media should pay more attention to other Englishmen he sees as better role models for the youth.
“These guys never reach the top 15. Like, realistically, [if you understand MMA] he’ll never reach it. I don’t think he’s a great role model for young guys.
“Please follow Tom Aspinall, Arnold Allen, Leon Edwards, real men inside the cage and outside the cage. I’m proud to be on the same card as a man like Tom Aspinall.” (transcribed by Alexander K. Lee/MMA Fighting)
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