Despite winning against Manel Kape in his last fight for the promotion, undefeated flyweight contender Muhammad Mokaev’s abrupt exit from the UFC left fans with many questions. When Dana White addressed the situation after UFC 304, he cited that there were “many different reasons” why the 24-year-old’s contract wasn’t renewed. Well, we finally have Mokaev’s side of the story, and he approached the UFC departure in a rather positive manner.

When Dana White told the media that Muhammad Mokaev’s departure happened because of some issues with the matchmakers, he wasn’t lying about it. The flyweight star claims the UFC CEO played no part in pushing him away from the promotion, and that it was what the matchmakers, including Hunter Campbell, and possibly Sean Shelby, and Mick Maynard, who started having problems with Mokaev ahead of his last fight. And guess what? He’s come to terms with how things went down.

“To be honest, like Dana said in the interview, he wasn’t involved. It’s all matchmakers,” Muhammad Mokaev told ‘Home of Fight’. “I was fighting on my last fight deal. I don’t think the problem in hotel was the main issue. It didn’t help, but it wasn’t the main issue to not continue my contract. But whatever happened, it’s their decision.”

‘The Punisher’ is looking to make his way back, and because of that, he does not want to burn the bridge back to the UFC by causing inconvenience to the UFC execs, including Dana White. While claiming to be working on his fighting style to battle the critics claiming that he has a “boring” approach to his fights, he hopes that fans rally for his return in the future because he isn’t blacklisted by the UFC, and he also plans on increasing his presence in MMA media.

“At the end of the day, it’s their organization. Like saying, ‘Hey, take me,’ [won’t work]. If they don’t want, why keep asking? You don’t want to be there where people don’t want to see you,” Mokaev added. “But same time, I’m in touch with them. It’s not like I’m banned, like Paul Daley, or something like this from the USA. Same time, I just need to improve my striking and keep showing up on the media. If fans want to see me back, they will sign me.”

While he hopes to make it back to the world’s premier MMA promotion one day, Muhammad Mokaev has to carry on fighting, as he’s a very young prospect. It seems like he does have an opportunity to fight in a big-name organization, but the flyweight star is a bit hesitant to go ahead with that offer.

Muhammad Mokaev is hesitant to fight in the PFL

The 24-year-old undefeated star is planning to stay as active as possible and fight anybody who stands in front of him. Muhammad Mokaev had quite a number of offers to fight, but what attracted him the most was the one against Kyoji Horiguchi, who could not make it to his planned UFC Baku return due to an injury. Before that, there was a proposal by the PFL for a potential Mokaev vs Horiguchi fight, but that didn’t happen.

Now, the PFL is trying to make things work for the undefeated fighter, but Muhammad Mokaev has an issue with the promotion because it’s all about getting back to the UFC for him. “PFL said they’re willing to open flyweight tournament if I join them. They’ve been good to me, to be honest,” Mokaev told MMA Fighting. “I respect all organizations, but I just don’t want to get stuck in any contract.”

“I understand from the company’s side too, they invest in you, they put everything [into] promoting you, and then you just [say], ‘Thank you for letting me use you. I’m going.’ They know what my goal [is] exactly, and I’m not lying to anyone. I’m saying, listen, I’m here to put my performance and get back in the world rankings. I don’t want to lie and [say] I never want to go to UFC,” Mokaev added.

Is Dana White listening to what Muhammad Mokaev is saying? ‘The Punisher’ has displayed grace with regard to the UFC giving him the boot, so will that serve as the foundation for his return to the world’s premier MMA promotion? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.