Islam Makhachev’s double-champ aspirations are no secret to anyone, and Belal Muhammad has his back. The UFC 304 welterweight title contender has thrown in an entirely new division for the Dagestani fighter to conquer the middleweight division ruled by Dricus Du Plessis.
Belal Muhammad recently shared his thoughts on teammate Islam Makhachev’s potential. He believed that Makhachev could not only move up but dominate at middleweight. ‘Bully B’ believed that the lightweight champion had the size, strength, and skill to match up well against the 185-pounders.
“I think he’ll beat [Dricus] Du Plessis. I think he is a better all-round fighter. He’s strong enough to compete with Du Plessis. He can definitely do it if he wants to be a double champ,” stated Muhammad in an interview with Home of Fight.
Muhammad himself is up this weekend to try to win the welterweight title from Leon Edwards. If he succeeds, both he and Makhachev will refrain from fighting each other, given that they are mates in Khabib Nurmagomeodov’s team.
Makhachev is on a 14-fight win streak. He has defended his lightweight belt three times since snatching it up from Charles Oliveira. His aspirations for the second belt are more than reasonable. But whether that second belt comes in welterweight or middleweight depends entirely on the result of the UFC 304 main event.
Belal Muhammad Talks About Fighting Islam Makhachev
Friendships often take a backseat to titles in the MMA world, but not for Muhammad.
The welterweight contender recently addressed a burning question in the MMA community. Would he fight Makhachev if he became the UFC welterweight champion?
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Muhammad’s answer represented his bond with the Dagestani champion, as he swiftly denied such a notion. He revealed that he would never fight Makhachev, calling him his brother.
“I would never fight Islam [Makhachev], he’s my brother… Maybe there’s 2 or 3 guys that are next in line after this fight… and then I have a chance to move up to middleweight… [Islam] still got some fighters to fight, I still got some fighters to fight. And then, we both could move up,” stated Muhammad in the UFC 304 pre-fight media day presser.
It’s refreshing to see such camaraderie in a field known for its fierce rivalries. Muhammad hinted at his own potential move to middleweight down the road. Meanwhile, he believes Makhachev could skip welterweight entirely and go straight for middleweight gold, taking the fight to the 185’ers.
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