Chael Sonnen plays devil's advocate for 'rat' in Belal Muhammad's UFC 288 camp
Chael Sonnen has seemingly played devil's advocate for the purported 'rat' in Belal Muhammad's UFC 288 camp against Gilbert Burns. Prior to their fight, the MMA community was rife with rumors that Muhammad was dealing with an ankle injury. Regardless, Muhammad ended up securing a dominant unanimous decision win against Burns.
Belal Muhammad later revealed that he was indeed dealing with an ankle injury heading into the fight against Gilbert Burns. However, 'Remember The Name' subsequently emphasized that he wasn't the one who leaked the information regarding his injury.
Speaking to ESPN MMA, Muhammad suggested that there was a rat/mole in his camp, who leaked the information. He further indicated that he intends to find the person responsible for the leak.
Watch Muhammad's ESPN MMA interview below:
In a recent edition of Beyond the Fight, MMA fighter-turned-analyst Chael Sonnen appeared to suggest that the individual who leaked the information may not have done so out of ill will towards Belal Muhammad. 'The Bad Guy' recalled that he himself had once inadvertently leaked information concerning a training partner's injury.
Chael Sonnen implied that such leaks could potentially happen as part of mundane conversations and may not necessarily mean that the person leaking the information wants to put their training partner at a disadvantage.
On that note, he opined that the supposed 'rat' in Muhammad's camp could possibly be a young fighter who looks up to the 34-year-old UFC welterweight. Sonnen stated:
"If Belal Muhammad goes in, he starts shaking people down; that's going to be a pretty scary guy that's coming looking for you. You're not going to want to show up to practice at three if you think that he's actually pi**ed and if he's talking about [the fact that] he's going to exterminate a rat."
"It could have been an accident. Guy could have just been making conversation, happened to see something with his idol [Muhammad]. He's talking to another fight fan on the telephone. Had a little bit of inside information. It's always fun to have that. Accidents happen. I would like to give the rat; I would like to give this guy the benefit of the doubt."
Watch Sonnen discuss the topic at 7:19 in the video below:
Could Belal Muhammad's next fight be a UFC title matchup?
Following Belal Muhammad's victory over former UFC welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns at UFC 288 on May 6, many in the MMA community believe that he's firmly inserted himself into the 170-pound title picture. Meanwhile, as per UFC president Dana White, reigning UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards will defend his belt against Colby Covington next.
Dana White announced during the #UFC286 post-fight press conference that Colby Covington will get a title shot next against Leon Edwards 👀
WHAT A MATCHUP 🔥 https://t.co/JHAIHZvd5z
The consensus is that the UFC could book Belal Muhammad to face the winner of the Edwards-Covington fight for the UFC welterweight title. As of this time, the exact date for the Edwards vs. Covington matchup hasn't been officially announced. That said, it's highly likely that Muhammad's next fight will be a UFC welterweight title matchup.