Belal Muhammad understands the fight game well enough to know that he needs a major scalp under his belt before he can challenge for Kamaru Usman’s title. Of course, taking out a highly-ranked opponent like Stephen Thompson – which Muhammad did at the final UFC event of 2021 – helps, but he know the game is about hype.
Khamzat Chimaev, with his undefeated record and 100% finish rate, is about as hyped as they come, and Muhammad told MMAFighting that he wants a piece of him.
Belal Muhammad Wants to Derail Khamzat Hype Train
“To me, rankings don’t mean anything. It’s about hype. It’s about who the UFC wants to push and who’s that guy? Who’s that [Conor] McGregor now?
Who’s that next big star? As we saw last year with [Jorge] Masvidal, where it’s like, you don’t have to be No. 2 to get the title shot. You don’t have to be No. 1 to get the title shot.
It’s about who’s getting that push right now in that right moment. Right now in that right moment, [with] Khamzat, you get the most hype from beating a guy like him than anybody [else] honestly.”
Even UFC president Dana White says nobody wants to fight Chimaev. Muhammad is happy to step up and derail the Borz hype train. “It makes sense for anybody in the division.
He has the most hype in the division right now. He has that McGregor X-factor stardom right now, where the fans think he’s untouchable. The boss thinks he’s untouchable.
They all think it’s just a matter of time before he becomes champion. So for me, if I beat him, I steal all of his hype, and I think it’s worth more than beating anybody ranked in the division. Beating him is probably worth more than beating Colby Covington just because of all the hype he has right now.”
Muhammad isn’t scared of Chimaev’s fearsome reputation, and plans on exposing Chimaev for all the world to see on his way to the belt.
“Do I know why he’s got all this hype? He’s got four wins. Do I think he’s this Terminator because of those four wins? No. Do I think that he’s this pay-per-view star because of those four wins? No. But the UFC does.
If they think that, then I’m the one that’s going to have to put a stop to it.” Do you want to see Chimaev vs Muhammad? Let us know in the comments.
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