Belal Muhammad is weighing in on the options for the first defense of his freshly minted UFC welterweight championship. Muhammad toppled the reign of Leon Edwards at UFC 304 with a unanimous decision win and has been strongly linked with a fight either against Kamaru Usman or Shavkat Rakhmonov.
Muhammad’s coach Louis Taylor weighed in on the 36-year-old’s next fight in an exclusive interview with James Lynch for Sportskeeda MMA. Taylor said:
“If you watch Belal’s career, the [year-long gap] that we had to wait from the Gilbert Burns fight until the Leon [Edwards] fight, that was literally the longest layoff Belal has ever had. It made me nervous stepping up after such a long layoff into such a high-caliber bout. I think we should fight in November [or] December… It would be great.”
When asked about potential locations ufc-welterweight-title-defence-undefeated-shavkat-rakhmonov-likely-2024-per-division-insider” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-is-sponsored=”false”>for the upcoming fight, the coach expressed a clear preference for Las Vegas over New York. UFC 309 will go down on Nov. 16 at the Madison Square Garden in New York, while the pay-per-view calendar will close with the UFC 310 showcase on Dec. 7 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Despite acknowledging the iconic status of Madison Square Garden, the coach criticized the New York State Athletic Commission (NSAC), describing it as overly stringent and not particularly supportive of MMA fighters. Speaking about potential opponents for Muhammad’s next fight, Taylor added:
“I mean I would prefer ‘no-knees’ [Kamaru] Usman. But no, no, no… Both of those guys are well-deserving and well-respected. Again if you go for the numbers game it’s Usman. If you go for the legacy game, taking someone’s 0 [undefeated record] it would be Shavkat.”
Checkout Sportskeeda MMA’s exclusive interview with Louis Taylor below:
Belal Muhammad’s coach previews potential matchup against Shavkat Rakhmonov
Undefeated Kazakh sensation Shavkat Rakhmonov has emerged as the frontrunner to challenge Belal Muhammad for the welterweight throne next. The 29-year-old boasts an impressive record of 18 wins in as many fights, rattling off all those victories by finishes.
In his last fight, he handed former UFC welterweight title challenger Stephen Thompson the first submission loss of his career. Muhammad’s coach previewed a potential clash against ‘Nomad’ in the aforementioned exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA, stating:
“Gas tank is going to be a factor and we beat him [Rakhmonov] 3-2 or 4-1… I look at people like Shavkat… Shavkat’s a finisher. But if you don’t put Belal out of there, he’s going to keep coming.”
