Rising British star Muhammad Mokaev branded Paddy Pimblett a "bulls*** guy" and an "animal" in a stunning rant.
Mokaev was speaking after his dominant win over Charles Johnson at UFC London on Saturday night, two hours before Pimblett took to the cage to take on Jordan Leavitt. And the Russian-born Brit did not hold back with his opinion of the popular lightweight.
"You give this bulls*** guy Paddy Pimblett attention, these guys never ever reach the top 15, realistically they will never reach... I don't think he is not a great role model for young guys. Please follow Tom Aspinall, Arnold Allen, Leon Edwards, men outside the cage and inside the cage.
"This guy pulls pants down, you don't do this or get fat and drink beer like an animal. My first refugee centre was in Liverpool, I know real Scouse people and they don't do stuff like that. This guy is too much; I'm not a hater, I just want the new generation to follow real men. He walks behind security and when he sees a camera he is a thrill guy and when there's no camera he's hiding; I know this energy."
Mokaev was alluding to Pimblett's antics at Friday's weigh-in when he bared his backside after successfully weighing in at 156lb for his third UFC fight. He pulled the prank as a riposte to those who had criticised the 27-year-old for blowing up in weight between fights.
Pimblett admitted to weighing as much as the light-heavyweight limit of 205lb after stuffing his face following his win over Rodrigo Vargas in March. "For everyone who tried to fat-shame me and say I'd miss weight or f***ing pull out, here's me a***," Pimblett said before pulling down his shorts and showing his bum.
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Pimblett has made no apologies for his behaviour outside the cage - but insists he won't fall victim to the same rise and fall experienced by Conor McGregor in recent years. Former two-weight champion McGregor has won just one fight in six years and faces an uncertain future in the sport.
But Pimblett said this week: "I’ve already had that, not on a bigger scale but when I was 21 and won the Cage Warriors world title. I was hanging around with the wrong people, not being with my proper mates and I split up with my missus. I’m happy that happened to me because I had to hit rock bottom before coming back up."
