Muhammad Mokaev has made it clear he will not be making another big jump in weight class after being choked unconscious by Arman Tsarukyan in Brazil.
Mokaev, who holds the Brave CF flyweight title and fights at 125lb, remains unbeaten in his natural division. But when Tsarukyan’s bout with Georgio Poullas was rescheduled for the March 28 RAF Wrestling event, Mokaev stepped up on short notice to fill in against the UFC lightweight.
Despite holding his own for most of the first eight minutes, the size difference eventually caught up with him. ‘Ahalkalakets’ secured a rear naked choke late in the first round, and while the 25-year-old refused to tap out, he ended up being put to sleep as a result.
Muhammad Mokaev returns to flyweight after one-sided loss to Arman Tsarukyan
Mokaev has been a dominant force in MMA since his days as an amateur. He even went undefeated during his time in the UFC, only leaving the promotion because of disagreements with matchmakers.
Although he did lose a split decision at ADXC in 2024, the defeat to Arman Tsarukyan on Wednesday night was his first truly convincing loss. Footage shared by Red Corner MMA showed him visibly emotional as he left the cage.
Afterwards, he seemed to take it all in good humour. Posting on X, he said: “Back to flyweight,” adding a laughing emoji and a shrug. “Never give away 25kg anymore.”
The actual weight gap was not quite that large. Tsarukyan usually weighs in at 156lb while Mokaev fights at 125lb, making it a 31lb difference (roughly 14kg).
Tsarukyan’s exact weight was not listed for this bout – the broadcast graphics simply marked it as ‘X’ – but there was no mistaking who was the bigger man when they squared up.
Mokaev later posted again on social media: “Zero excuses. If I get another opportunity like this in my life, I will take [it] again and again. Competed against one of the best lightweights on 2 days notice, 45lb difference. Win or learn, go out there and challenge yourself, that’s the message to all youth. See you at the top!”
There were no hard feelings between them after the fight but Tsarukyan admitted that his next opponent needed to be more of a physical match for him.
He called out Charles Oliveira for a rematch of their UFC 300 fight and also challenged controversial black belt Dillon Danis.
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