All too often in the fight business, opponents look for ways to get under one another’s skin, or build some manufactured beef to hype a fight that nine times out of ten didn’t need it. Not so with Kane Mousah and Dylan Tuke ahead of their PFL Europe 2 showdown on June 8 in Newcastle, England, however.
Sadly, the circumstances here are tragic. Tuke’s mother passed away earlier this month, with the fighter cancelling several media obligations as a result after announcing the news. He was back and sounding ready to go this week, however, appearing at a virtual press conference featuring the top four stars from the PFL Newcastle card, where himself and Mousah serve as the night’s co-main event.
Just prior to the press event kicking off, Mousah paid his respects and gave his condolences to his opponent.
“Just wanted to say Dylan, before we start bro, condolences about your mother and that,” Mousah started, with Tuke responding with his appreciation. “That means a lot bro. I appreciate that. Really, I mean it. You’re a real one brother. You’re a real one and I appreciate that.”
When Mousah said simply that “We’ve got to do what we’ve got to do on the night,” Tuke replied by saying “we’ve just got to go and have some fun. This is the life we’re living. She wouldn’t want me to pull out, so I wouldn’t pull out. Might as well make some fun and make some money.”
Mousah would go on to add that “every interview that I’ve had surrounding the fight and about the fight, I’ve just started every interview and said listen, at the end of the day, before I start this interview I just want to give my condolences to my opponent. And I just wanted to show him the respect for being a solid man and going through with the fight, because for me personally I don’t know where my head would be at, and I don’t know if I’d have the strength to do it.”
This is what sportsmanship and respect in MMA looks like.
Kane Mousah (@Kane86mousah) gives his condolences to #PFLNewcastle opponent Dylan Tuke (@TheNukeTuke) following the death of Tuke's mother.
"I just wanted to show him the respect for being a solid man and going through… pic.twitter.com/gR4QLU45Me
— Cageside Press (@Cagesidepress) May 23, 2024
And that, ladies and gentleman, is what sportsmanship and respect looks like in the fight game. Dylan Tuke and Kane Mousah face off in the lightweight co-main event of 2024’s PFL Europe 2 on June 8, 2024 at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle, England.
