Mokaev accuses UFC of threatening to cut wrestlers who refuse to change their style

Muhammad Mokaev has accused the UFC of pressuring fighters to abandon wrestling-heavy styles under threat of contract termination, pointing to the non-renewal of undefeated flyweight Farid Basharat as evidence of a troubling pattern.

Mokaev (17-0, 1 NC), who left the UFC after the promotion declined to renew his contract following a win over Manel Kape in July 2024, posted his allegations on X. “When fighters are getting phone calls from bosses telling them, ‘If you keep wrestling like that, you’re going to get cut,’ then you’re basically telling fighters how you want them to fight,” he wrote. “At what point does that cross the line? Isn’t that influencing the competition?”

The former UFC flyweight also took aim at how the promotion communicates about fighters it releases. “If you want to release a fighter, fine. But don’t then publicly say he was ‘hard to deal with’ or create some bullsh*t narrative about him that could damage his reputation and make other organizations think twice about signing him. Release fighters if you want. Just don’t try to damage their careers on the way out.”

The comments were prompted in part by the departure of Farid Basharat, who finished his UFC contract with a 7-0 record inside the promotion and a professional mark of 16-0, yet was not offered a new deal. UFC CEO Dana White, without referencing Basharat by name, suggested that difficulties with matchmakers or declined bouts could explain why fighters with winning records are sometimes let go.

Mokaev argued that framing departures in those terms risks harming fighters’ standing with other organisations looking to sign them.

Since leaving the UFC, Mokaev has gone 4-0 outside the promotion, keeping his professional record unblemished. His public intervention adds to a broader debate about the UFC’s roster management practices, particularly its treatment of wrestlers and grapplers whose styles may generate less fan engagement than striking-based fighters.