Muhammad Mokaev: Kyoji Horiguchi best UFC flyweight, not Joshua Van
Muhammad Mokaev doesn't think UFC flyweight champion Joshua Van is No. 1. Van (16-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC), who dethroned Alexandre Pantoja by injury TKO to claim the belt at UFC 323 , makes his first title defense against Tatsuro Taira (18-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) at UFC 327 on April 11 from Kaseya Center in Miami ( Paramount+ ).
Mokaev (16-0-1) was on the cusp of title contention after defeating Manel Kape at UFC 304 in July 2024, but the UFC opted not to re-sign him. He still feels like he has unfinished business, and likes his chances against the entire division – including the champion. "He's a good fighter, but he got knocked out by Charles Johnson, who I beat," Mokaev said of Van on "The Ariel Helwani Show.
" "Right now, in my opinion, the best guy in that division is Kyoji Horiguchi. The rest, I don't see anyone challenging me right now. " Horiguchi (36-5 MMA, 9-1 UFC) runs things back with Kape (22-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in a UFC Fight Night main event at the Meta APEX on June 20.
Mokaev is aware that Kape is no easy test, but still sees Horiguchi beating him again. "It's a good matchup," Mokaev said. "They fought in 2017.
I did a lot of breakdowns when I fought Manel, and I think it's not going to be easy for Kyoji this time, and especially the cage will be small. It's APEX, right? It could be closer than some people think, but I take Kyoji in this fight.