Belal Muhammad claims Dricus du Plessis "not welcome here in Chicago" ahead of UFC 319 while backing Khamzat Chimaev to win

Belal Muhammad recently sent Dricus du Plessis a cautionary message and made it clear that the reigning UFC middleweight champion isn't "welcome" in Chicago.

It's no secret that du Plessis and Muhammad have no love for each other, often trading shots on social media and in interviews. Ahead of du Plessis' title defense against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319 on Aug. 16 in Chicago, the South African fighter claimed he watched Muhammad's last fight against Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315 just to watch him lose the welterweight title.

With du Plessis' next fight going down on Muhammad's home turf in Chicago, 'Remember the Name' recently fired back at the South African star's comments and backed Chimaev to win. In a YouTube video, he said:

"Also, heard Dricus is in Chicago. Bro, this is my city. If you need anything from Chicago, food, groceries, therapists, cage, gym, sauna, make sure you don’t hit me up. You’re not welcome here. Chicago, you see him, you let him know you don’t like his kind. Go Khamzat."

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When Dricus du Plessis previewed a potential Belal Muhammad fight

Dricus du Plessis is confident of beating Belal Muhammad in dominant fashion in a potential fight. Earlier this year, the South African fighter previewed a potential fight against Muhammad and claimed that 'Remember the Name' was too small to pose any problems for him.

In an interview with Ariel Helwani, du Plessis questioned how Muhammad could stand a chance against him and said:

''No, that would be unfair, If I fight Belal Muhammad, it would be unfair. One hundred percent, have you seen the size of the man? What is he going to do? Is he going to get somebody to help him? Is he going to sit on somebody’s neck? How is it going to work? He’s the smallest, I couldn’t believe that he’s at 170 when I saw him. I couldn’t believe that he fights at 170. I step on his head and it’s over. That’s how that fight goes.''

Catch Dricus du Plessis' comments below (55:35):

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Edited by Nishant Zende.