UFC Welterweight Champion Belal Muhammad is confident in his ability to break Shavkat Rakhmonov mentally when they face off.
Muhammad, who claimed the title by dominating Leon Edwards at UFC 304, is expected to defend it against the undefeated Rakhmonov. This matchup comes after the Kazakh secured a five-round decision victory over Ian Garry at UFC 310 — a fight that originally had “Remember the Name” slated to compete in before he withdrew due to a foot infection.
While the champ acknowledges Rakhmonov as a formidable challenge, he believes he has the ability to push him to his limits and ultimately prevail.
“When you’re fighting a guy like Shavkat, where they put him on this pedestal as this undefeated crazy guy, I see holes in his game the same way I saw holes in Leon’s game,” Muhammad said in an interview with Barstool Sports Chicago. “I think Leon’s a better striker than Shavkat, but mentally, I think Shavkat’s a lot stronger. I don’t see him breaking mentally.
“The biggest thing for him is, now you’re fighting a guy that’s not afraid of you. Everybody he fights comes in there with nerves and fear: ‘Oh, he’s crazy. He’s a robot. He’s this, this and that.’ A lot of guys just fold because of that fear.
“For me, I’m going to be in his face the whole time, and it’s going to be the same resolve — another guy breaking. A lot of guys like him, when you’ve never felt that, where a guy is not afraid of you, or a guy is still with you this whole time for five rounds, pushing a different pace that you’ve never seen before — and you’re supposed to be the undefeated guy — you’ve never had to experience that before. It’s going to be the worst-case scenario for him.”
