Former UFC fighter Muhammad Mokaev seemed to enjoy watching Steve Erceg endure a difficult evening at the office this past weekend.
Erceg was one of the homegrown fighters at the UFC 305 pay-per-view event in Perth, Australia, and entered the Octagon to the cheers of the RAC Arena crowd. Unfortunately for the youngest flyweight title challenger, he joins Tai Tuivasa and Junior Tafa on the list of unsuccessful Australians on fight night.
“AstroBoy’s” co-main event against Kai Kara-France didn’t reach the first siren, and the New Zealander picked up a quick knockout to complete his impressive return to action Down Under.
The difficult result for Erceg came just three months after a tough fight with champion Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 301 in Brazil, where he narrowly missed out on winning the flyweight gold medal against all expectations.
But Erceg’s quest for a second title chance has now quickly stalled, and Mokaev certainly seems to be happy about it …
Mokaev laments karma after Erceg was knocked down by Kara-France at UFC 305
While Erceg is not one for trash talk and heated feuds, he recently clashed with Mokaev when he expressed his opinion on the Dagestan-born Brit’s sudden UFC exit.
After the promotion decided not to re-sign “The Punisher,” with Dana White citing issues outside the cage, Erceg claimed Mokaev showed disrespectful behavior toward UFC personnel.
The free agent immediately denied these allegations and reiterated that Erceg was a “liar” as he reacted to a photo of the Australian following his first knockdown by Kara-France at UFC 305.
“That’s what you get for lying,” Mokaev wrote.
Following last weekend’s result, Erceg has slipped to No. 8 in the flyweight rankings, while Mokaev lost his place at the top of the rankings after his contract expired at UFC 304 in Manchester, where he defeated Manel Kape in a lackluster fight.
