MANCHESTER, England – Coach Eric Nicksick found himself caught in the middle of Manel Kape and Muhammad Mokaev’s altercation at the host hotel, and he didn’t see it coming.
Kape (19-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) faces Mokaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) on Saturday at UFC 304 from Co-op Live. Tensions have been boiling between the two top-ranked flyweights, who engaged in a brawl at the fighter hotel just days out from their fight. Kape’s coach Nicksick explains that Mokaev set Kape up after initiating conversation in a friendly manner.
“It was a very weird situation,” Nicksick told MMA Junkie. “Because we were all walking back into the hotel and then Mokaev and his team were coming out, they were very peaceful, and Mokaev wanted to take a picture with Manel. He said, ‘For our Muslim brothers, let’s take a picture for peace,’ and Manel agreed to that picture. It just felt weird.
“The whole situation kind of felt weird, but I turned my back to talk to Oban Elliott and then all of a sudden when Manel posed for that picture, Mokaev like sucker punched him. So, this whole thing ensued. It was so confusing for me because I turned around and all of a sudden there’s just commotion behind me.”
Their bad blood spilled over into the ceremonial weigh-ins, where Mokaev charged at Kape before the pair were separated. Nicksick thinks it’s a ploy from Mokaev and his team to throw Kape off his game.
Security took ZERO CHANCES letting Muhammad Mokaev and Manel Kape get close at #UFC304 ceremonial weigh-ins 😳😳 pic.twitter.com/MvkNRz8V9A
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) July 26, 2024
“It’s very smart on the Mokaev team,” Nicksick said. “I feel like what they’re trying to do is get Manel to fight this fight emotionally and to fight out of his tactics in being precise and being accurate with the fight. So, good on them in a way, but we can’t take that bait. We got to fight smart, and that’s what we got to prove tomorrow.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 304.
