"He deserves to get slapped" - Belal Muhammad on the appeal of a fight with Colby Covington
Belal Muhammad is open to fighting former interim UFC welterweight champion Colby Covington next. Mainly because he hates 'Chaos' and wants to have the opportunity to slap him.
Muhammad defeated Stephen Thompson via unanimous decision (30-25 and 30-26 x2) in dominant fashion at UFC Fight Night 199 last Saturday. Since then, he has called out several top contenders at 170lbs.
Speaking to MMA Junkie, 'Remember the Name' stressed that he's been wanting to square off against Covington for a long time. He added that he can match the two-time title challenger in trash talk and fighting skills.
"Yeah, honestly I would really want that fight. I have been calling out for that guy [Colby Covington] for like 10 years, before he became a title contender. Before he got ranked, I wanted to fight him just because stylistically I like that matchup. And then now I just want to fight him because I hate him. Like his trash talk and the stuff he says is so stupid. And he deserves to get slapped. I want to be the guy that does the slapping. You want to do the trash talk? Let's do the trash talk. I will literally make you look dumb at press conferences because you can tell he writes stuff down. So to fight a guy like me who is sharp with the tongue and the fist, it will be a tough camp for him," said Muhammad.
Watch Belal Muhammad in conversation with MMA reporter John Morgan below:
Covington last fought welterweight champ Kamaru Usman in the main event of UFC 268 at Madison Square Garden in New York. He lost the bout via unanimous decision (48-47 x2 and 49-46).
Belal Muhammad has replaced Stephen Thompson in the top five of the UFC welterweight rankings
Belal Muhammad entered the top five of the UFC welterweight rankings at the expense of Stephen Thompson. He is now behind Colby Covington, Gilbert Burns, Leon Edwards and Vicente Luque on the list.
Thompson, on the other hand, slipped to the No.7 spot. Neil Magny, Sean Brady and Michael Chiesa have all moved a spot down the rankings as a result.
Belal Muhammad enters the welterweight top-5 in the latest rankings update. https://t.co/BtpziFM73a
Muhammad also challenged Khamzat Chimaev, Edwards and Jorge Masvidal to fight since his win over Thompson. However, it is currently unclear who he will take on next.