"He's such a weird fighter" - Fellow Chicago-born ex-UFC fighter predicts how Belal Muhammad would fare against Shavkat Rakhmonov
Belal Muhammad vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov is a widely discussed fight, with many changing their perceptions of how it may play out following Rakhmonov's win earlier this month. Muhammad consistently represents Chicago publicly, as does a former UFC flyweight and a soon-to-be Rizin debutant.
Speaking on Bowks Talking Bouts, Jose 'Shorty' Torres discussed several topics ahead of his fight against Makoto Shinryu as part of Rizin's New Year's Eve festivities. When asked if he sees the possible welterweight title fight between Muhammad and Rakhmonov playing out any differently after Rokhmonov's performance against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 310, Torres said:
"Belal, he's such a weird fighter in a good way. That like you don't know if he's gonna go for the takedown. You don't know if he's gonna grapple, you don't know if he's going to box you. You don't know if he's going to fake a takedown, go back to striking. You don't know if he's going to randomly throw a head kick because sometimes he does that."
"You're like where did this come from? He's representing his people right now through all the hard times that they're going through. So he has a lot to fight for. So I can see Belal not just doing well but really putting a; again there's a reason why his nickname is 'remember the name' Belal Muhammad because he puts a stamp on that."
Check out Torres' assessment of the eventual Muhammad vs. Rakhmonov title fight post-UFC 310 below (30:42):
Surging UFC welterweight favors Belal Muhammad over Shavkat Rakhmonov
Joaquin Buckley is fresh off the heels of his UFC Tampa finish of former interim welterweight champion in the promotion Colby Covington. In the lead-up to the Covington contest, Buckley stated that he foresees "and still" being uttered by the octagon announcer once the dust settles on Belal Muhammad and Shavkat Rakhmonov.
The 36-year-old champion is someone that Buckley is confident in picking as he also indicated not being impressed with Rakhmonov's points win over Machado Garry on Dec. 7. Buckley succinctly picked Muhammad to retain his belt with emphasis.