News about Muhammad Mokaev’s sudden exit from a May 16 flyweight bout stirs widespread concern among fans. Reports claim the Briton, who was released by the UFC after his contract expired in July 2024, has visa issues. This development means the fans will have to wait longer to watch Mokaev face Brazil’s Adriano Moraes in the future.
Born in Russia before immigrating to England with his family as a young refugee, 25-year-old Mokaev boasts decent career records. He held an impressive unbeaten record before recently becoming a free agent. He also owns an unbeaten record in 17 matches with one co-contest. These bright stats sparked excitement about the scheduled fight card against Moraes.
Muhammed Mokaev’s shock replacement from May 16 fight card sparks concerns
Moraes stands tall as a 38-year-old former 8xONE World Champion and former Shooto South American Champion. His resume has equally sparked excitement concerning the bout. However, fresh reports claim 30-year-old Johannesburg-born Phumi Nkuta will fight Moraes next week as Mokaev’s replacement.
“Muhammad Mokaev is OUT. Adriano Moraes will now take on Phumi Nkuta on the #RouseyCarano undercard on May 16. Mokaev OUT with visa issues.”
The MMA event will include 11 bouts, including Francis Ngannou vs Philipe Lins in a heavyweight clash. We’ll also see a welterweight bout between Nate Diaz and Mike Perry. Elsewhere, Aline Pereira and former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos fill the fight card. Semi-retired 39-year-old Ronda Rousey, the first woman UFC champion, is also on the card. Interestingly, Rouse famously declared plans to “rewrite her ending” in her first MMA bout in ten years while she faces Gina Carano next week.
Other former UFC fighters on the cards include Lorenz Larkin, Chris Avila, and Robelis Despaigne. The event will be held at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, and will stream exclusively on Netflix. Following Muhammad Mokaev shock exit, many fans are concerned his chances of returning to the UFC may have thinned further. Hopefully, he can quickly resolve all administrative issues and latch properly onto subsequent opportunities to revisit the big stage.
