Kane Mousah prefers the straightforward, no-frills approach to prizefighting.
The 38-year-old Manchester Top Team product will take his second Professional Fighters League assignment when he faces Dylan Tuke in the PFL Europe 2 lightweight co-main event on Saturday at Utilita Arena in Newcastle, England. Now with more bouts behind him than ahead of him, Mousah has entered a new stage in his career—one he embraces wholeheartedly.
“More than anything, if I’m honest, I’m the inspirer, motivational inspirer,” he said. “I’m here to inspire the younger generation and the older generation to work hard, dedicate themselves and be disciplined.”
Mousah leans into his latest test on the heels of back-to-back losses. He last fought at PFL 1, where he dropped a unanimous decision to the unbeaten Jakub Kaszuba in his March 7 promotional debut. Mousah claims he was plagued by several pre-fight issues that interfered with his preparation and ultimately led to his misstep.
“The last fight didn’t go my way,” he said. “I had a few injuries leading up to it. I couldn’t push the pace. I didn’t have 100% cardio conditioning for that fight, and the type of fight that I had with Jakub needed me to be super, super conditioned and super fit. [With] the pull that I had in my back, I wasn’t able to do that the last four weeks. I wasn’t able to apply myself to where I like to apply myself. It was a very close fight, but he did squeeze it. In the last round, he was able to get the takedowns and secure it. I needed an extra 10 to 15% in the tank to win that fight.
“I got a staph infection nine days before the fight,” Mousah added. “I was shaking, shivering, two days after I got back from Thailand. Then I had to start the weight cut, and obviously, I had a damaged back, so I had a few things going against me in that [fight]. If I would have had all the boxes ticked, I would have won. The reality is, that’s what I understand in my mind and that’s what I believe.”
Health does not appear to be an issue ahead of his clash with Tuke, an Irishman who trains out of Higher Level Martial Arts in Scotland.
“No issues whatsoever,” Mousah said. “Look, I don’t like to talk about these things, but fans want to understand. The people watching that [Kaszuba] fight might think, ‘Well, why did Kane look so tired?’ If you watch the fight back, you’ll see that I was a lot more tired than any of them other fights, so I’m letting people know now. That was the reason why. Now, I’m fit. I’m doing my yoga. I’m stretching. Everything’s fine. This time, I’m on track with everything. I’ve not missed anything.”
Tuke, 27, has alternated wins and losses in each of his past seven outings, though his lack of consistency has done nothing to diminish his confidence. He last competed at PFL Europe 4 in December, when he put away Yazid Chouchane with a second-round rear-naked choke. The maneuver has resulted in more than half (four) of Tuke’s seven career victories. While Mousah respects what his opponent brings to the table, he plans to clear the latest hurdle being placed before him with room to spare.
“I’m just letting everybody know that my aim is to get two solid wins, if not three wins, this year and get myself in a good position to enter the PFL world’s next year,” he said. “If I get three big wins, I don’t see any reason why I can’t be in a position to enter into that. In terms of fighting, I’m here, I’m fit, I’m fresh [and] I’m hungry. The desire to fight and desire to win is here. I’m really competitive in the gym. I’m not giving up any rounds. I’m working hard to win all the rounds. I’m ready.”