The crowning of Belal Muhammad as the UFC welterweight champion seems to have infused fresh dynamism and renewed activity into the division. Muhammad was clear in articulating his vision that he wants to make the welterweight division great again, and is evaluating potential choices for his maiden title defense.
Undefeated Kazakh sensation Shavkat Rakhmonov wasted no time in asserting his claim to challenge Muhammad next following his victory over Leon Edwards at UFC 304. The pair have exchanged some words over the past few weeks based on scrutiny questioning Muhammad’s commitment to fight towards the end of the year.
Rakhmonov recently accused Muhammad of allegedly failing to uphold his commitment to remain an active champion. He wrote on X:
“After all the talk about being an active champion, truth is Belal isn’t even ready to defend his title this year.”
Belal Muhammad fired back at Rakhmonov’s comment, highlighting that ‘Nomad’ hasn’t competed since Dec. 2023. He also proposed the idea of a fight between Rakhmonov and former 170-pound champion Kamaru Usman to determine the next challenger. Muhammad wrote:
“Inactive? Lol I’m still on trial and Shavkat hasn’t fought since 2023 I think Shavkat and Usman should fight to find the real number-one contender”
Catch Belal Muhammad’s X post below: