Muhammad Mokaev blames TKO, Paramount for Basharat UFC exit
The unbeaten former UFC flyweight pushes back on Dana White, the Basharat brothers deny turning down fights and Evloev defends winning on the scorecards.
Muhammad Mokaev, who left the UFC unbeaten in 2024, blamed TKO, the promotion’s parent company, and broadcast partner Paramount for the exit of Farid Basharat, who was let go with a perfect 16-0 MMA record. Mokaev posted on X on Sunday, Oct. 18, a day after Dana White said at the UFC Edmonton press conference that there is a reason Basharat was not re-signed.
More voices have joined the discussion since then. Farid and his brother, Javid Basharat, denied turning down fights, and Movsar Evloev, who fights for the featherweight title Saturday at UFC 333, defended fighters who win on the scorecards.
What Mokaev said about TKO and Paramount
Mokaev answered White’s comments without going after the UFC president. “I blame Paramount and TKO,” he wrote, adding that the promotion has no real explanation for the release: “They can’t give a reason.”
In the same string of posts, he said the only justification left is “the matchmakers can’t deal with him,” and dismissed the answer as nonsense.
TKO owns the UFC. Paramount became the promotion’s U.S. broadcast home in 2026 under a seven-year deal announced in August 2025, worth an average of $1.1 billion per year.
Mokaev’s own case mirrors Basharat’s. He left the UFC at 7-0 after beating Manel Kape by unanimous decision at UFC 304 in Manchester in July 2024. At the time, White hinted at issues outside the cage. His exit, however, came before the Paramount deal.
How the Basharat brothers answered Dana White
As VF Comunica reported, White said in Edmonton that when a fighter is 16-0, 7-0 in the UFC, and does not get a new deal, there is definitely a reason. He spoke in general terms about fighters who are hard to deal with and turned-down opponents, without saying what happened with Basharat.
Farid replied on his Instagram Stories. “A lot of assumptions made, but no facts were said,” wrote the Afghan bantamweight, who also denied on video that he turned down opponents or had problems with UFC staff.
Javid, who also fought at bantamweight in the UFC, backed his brother on social media. “I can vouch that no fights were turned down nor were we hard to deal with,” he wrote. “We patiently waited 3 months and we found out when everyone else found out!”
Basharat is not the only well-known name to leave without a new contract. Welterweight Michael Page was also not re-signed by the UFC.
Evloev and decision wins ahead of UFC 333
The debate has reached fight week for UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi. The No. 1 featherweight, Evloev is 20-0 in MMA and 10-0 in the UFC, with every one of those UFC wins coming by decision. On Saturday he faces Alexander Volkanovski, who vowed to finish him before the fifth round.
Speaking to MMA Fighting, Evloev said finishes are not everything. “I have zero finishes in the UFC, but I’m still in UFC and I’m fighting for the title,” he said. “You can show the beauty of wrestling and there is not just fans of MMA who just wait for blood and something crazy.”
He also said that could change against the champion. “Now, maybe my first finish in my first title fight, why not? I have everything to do that.”
Before joining the UFC, Evloev won four fights by submission, according to the promotion’s official stats. Basharat submitted one opponent in the octagon, catching Brazil’s Kleydson Rodrigues with an arm-triangle choke at UFC Paris in 2023, and won his other six UFC fights on the scorecards. On the same Abu Dhabi card, Merab Dvalishvili joked that he is a decision machine.
What do you think: did the UFC get it wrong by letting Basharat go, or do TKO and Paramount have nothing to do with it? Let us know in the comments.
Read more:
- Farid Basharat: Dana White hints at reason for UFC release
- Volkanovski vows to finish unbeaten Evloev at UFC 333
- Merab Dvalishvili jokes he’s a decision machine before Yan 3
