Belala Muhammad doesn’t think Kamaru Usman will get anywhere close to a title shot.
Following his dominant performance against Jack Della Maddalena to claim the Welterweight World Championship, Islam Makhachev presented the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ for his first title defense at 170.
“If you give me a choice and ask me who you want to fight, I’ll take Kamaru,” Makhachev said during an appearance on About Last Fight. “But it’s not my job. Everyone, I’ll be ready…”
Soon after, Usman reacted to the news and admitted that he had done his part Pound-4-lb podcast that the idea of facing Makhachev “scared” him, but certainly didn’t scoff at the idea of being the first fighter to challenge the “Dagestani Destroyer.”
“I almost feel like when there are guys like me and Islam in the division, you almost feel like if Prates was the champion, what happened with JDM will definitely happen (with Prates),” Usman said. “Somebody could do that to them. When I look at a guy like Islam, I don’t really see any holes (in his game) and that’s something that scares me and that’s when you see some of the most spectacular performances, the last time I felt that was against Colby Covington.”
Belal Muhammad names the man he wants to see fight Makhachev, and it’s not Kamaru Usman
When Mohammed got wind of the back and forth between Makhachev and Usman, he was forced to speak out, questioning how Usman could qualify after having just one win in the past three years.
“For Usman to talk and act like he deserves a chance, the guy is one and three of his last four, and he turned down a fight with me to fight this weekend,” Muhammad said. MMA junkie. “So I think he’s automatically excluded. I feel like Shavkat.” [Rakhmonov] Because he is injured and out, he will have to win again.
“I think the leader at the moment is that [Michael] Morals, right? The performance he had, the streak he’s on. So for me, I had to surpass his performance.”
Both Michael Morales and Carlos Prates made big leaps up the welterweight rankings with their respective knockouts of Sean Brady and Leon Edwards at UFC 322.
In the eyes of many, one of them should be the first man for Makhachev, but with Usman’s matchday numbered, the UFC may be forced to give the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ another five-round fight before he puts down his gloves for good.
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