Belal Muhammad responds to Dricus du Plessis' "loser" comment and aims to become double champ: "I was tryin to be nice"
Belal Muhammad and Dricus du Plessis have just butted heads on X, with 'Remember the Name' hitting back at the South African dismissing him as a loser. The enmity stems from the welterweight title challenger's claim that UFC lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev would beat him if he moved to middleweight.
The South African retorted by claiming that he could now see why Muhammad was so disliked by the MMA fanbase, before describing himself as an ex-fan of him due to the latter's comments. Naturally, Muhammad responded, taking to X to dismiss du Plessis.
"I was tryin to be nice but dricus sucks after I beat Leon he'll. Be my easiest path to double champ status."
Muhammad appears more than confident of beating reigning welterweight champion Leon Edwards, vowing to finish him and then setting his sights on du Plessis. Many would characterize Muhammad's statements as him looking ahead of his opponent.
However, given how difficult Muhammad's path to a welterweight title shot has been, it is unlikely that UFC CEO Dana White would grant him the massive opportunity of possible two-division championship status if he does indeed beat Edwards.
Meanwhile, du Plessis must solidify his middleweight title reign with a successful defense of his 185-pound belt. While the UFC has not made any official announcements, he is expected to face former middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya, with whom he has a heated feud.
For now, fans will wait for an announcement from the UFC with high anticipation, especially in light of all of the high-profile fight cancellations as of late.
Belal Muhammad has had past spats with other UFC middleweight champions
There is no middleweight with whom Belal Muhammad has more problems than Sean Strickland, a former UFC middleweight champion. 'Tarzan' often criticizes Muhammad for the latter's political ideologies. Muhammad, who has never been one to stay quiet, slammed him on X:
"If sean tells you he's gonna fight you to the death it means he's gonna jab you and play defense for 25 minutes... if Sean sees ur a harmelss kid or homeless man on his ring camera he's gonna walk out side with a gun and record it to make it seem like he's crazy... if sean goes on a podcast it probably means he's gonna cry."
Whether their feud could ever lead to a fight remains to be seen. However, if 'Remember the Name' manages to beat Leon Edwards and secure a subsequent title shot at middleweight, and wins, he could face Strickland in his first title defense.