British UFC bantamweight fighter Farid Basharat has said that the promotion has denied his request to walk out for an upcoming fight with the flag of Afghanistan.
I would love to walk out with the flag, but I don't think they're allowing the Afghanistan flag. Not the Afghanistan flag. We tried in Abu Dhabi for Javid, and they said no. Because they don't recognize the current government flag, and the old one is not an official flag. So what flag are you going to bring out? The Afghanistan flag is still a no-no.
Farid Basharat
Recall, earlier UFC executive director Dana White said that the fighters of the promotion will once again be entering the octagon with their national flags.
On the night of January 14 at UFC Fight Night 234 Farid Basharat will fight against Taylor Lapilus.
Basharat, 26, last stepped into the octagon in September 2023 at UFC Fight Night 226, defeating Kleydson Rodrigues by first-round submission. He has 11 wins and no losses under his belt. The 31-year-old Lapilus has 19 wins and three losses.