{"id":125869,"date":"2024-03-22T13:12:24","date_gmt":"2024-03-22T13:12:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2024\/03\/22\/muhammad-mokaev-ufc-training-sets-me-up-for-ramadan-fasts\/"},"modified":"2024-03-22T13:12:24","modified_gmt":"2024-03-22T13:12:24","slug":"muhammad-mokaev-ufc-training-sets-me-up-for-ramadan-fasts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2024\/03\/22\/muhammad-mokaev-ufc-training-sets-me-up-for-ramadan-fasts\/","title":{"rendered":"Muhammad Mokaev: ‘UFC training sets me up for Ramadan fasts’"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Muhammad “The Punisher” Mokaev is one of the biggest names in UFC right now. <\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Fresh from a win against Alex Perez at the start of March, the 23-year-old is one step closer to a UFC flyweight title opportunity.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But he’s been talking to BBC Asian Network about the importance of his faith during Ramadan, a month of spiritual reflection for Muslims.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Sometimes you get lost, sometimes you can forget what your reason is for living,” he says. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Ramadan helps me to stay focused on my religion and helps remind myself what I’m living for.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Mokaev says his training for UFC prepares him for fasting during Ramadan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“As athletes, we do crash diets, sometimes we cut carbs completely or we dehydrate ourselves before a fight, so we’re already used to this.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“This is all mental work. Here, you have 30 days you have to fast and you cannot skip some days, you have to be consistent.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Mokaev’s faith played an important role in helping him adapt to life in the UK, where he arrived from Russia aged 12, shortly after his mum died.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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He first lived in a refugee shelter in Liverpool, before moving to Wigan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I’ve been given so much in life that I didn’t see coming,” he says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“At 15 or 16 years old I became more understanding of my religion, I think the struggles that happen to me at a young age are the best thing that ever happened to me. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’s made me who I am today and anything in my life right now, I’d be ready for it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
    \n
  • What is Ramadan, how long does it last and why do Muslims fast?<\/li>\n
  • Mokaev eying UFC title shot with win over Perez<\/li>\n
  • UFC champ Edwards up for WWE match after merger<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
    \n

    In the UK, his PE teacher took him under his wing, something Mokaev is still thankful for today.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    “The difficult part was I didn’t know the language, I didn’t know the jokes,” he says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    “I would Google Translate what people said to me and I’d try to make trouble. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    “Then the PE teacher who looked after me in school, he gave me the last chance every time I was naughty. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    “If he kicked me out, I would go to a different school, so maybe I would have become more of a bad guy. I still go and see my PE teacher. He comes to my fights and we stay in touch all time.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    Unbeaten professionally and with six UFC wins, Mokaev says he has his eyes on a belt this year. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    “I’m ready for a title fight,” he says. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    “I will do everything. I’m just gonna fight anyone who the UFC put in front of me.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \n

    Listen to Ankur Desai’s show on BBC Asian Network <\/i>live from 15:00-18:00 Monday to Thursday – or listen back <\/i>here.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Muhammad “The Punisher” Mokaev is one of the biggest names in UFC right now. Fresh from a win against Alex Perez at the start of March, the 23-year-old is one step closer to a UFC flyweight title opportunity. But he’s been talking to BBC Asian Network about the importance of his faith during Ramadan, a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-125869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-russia-ukraine-war"],"yoast_head":"\nMuhammad Mokaev: 'UFC training sets me up for Ramadan fasts' - Tahrir News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2024\/03\/22\/muhammad-mokaev-ufc-training-sets-me-up-for-ramadan-fasts\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Muhammad Mokaev: 'UFC training sets me up for Ramadan fasts'\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Muhammad “The Punisher” Mokaev is one of the biggest names in UFC right now. 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