Belal Muhammad seeks Nate Diaz-esque redemption against Gilbert Burns at UFC 288 

Belal Muhammad draws parallels with Nate Diaz ahead of his fight against Gilbert Burns [[Image credits: @mmafighting on Instagram]
Belal Muhammad draws parallels with Nate Diaz ahead of his fight against Gilbert Burns [[Image credits: @mmafighting on Instagram]

Belal Muhammad is looking to have a 'Nate Diaz moment' against Gilbert Burns at UFC 288 when the two square off at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on May 6.

Ahead of the contest, Muhammad made an appearance on the 'Anik & Florian Podcast'. During his time there, 'Remember the Name' brought up Nate Diaz's iconic callout to Conor McGregor and said he was in a similar position to the one the Stockton native was in in 2015.

Elaborating on his comments, Muhammad said that Burns was stealing opportunities away from him, similar to what Diaz accused McGregor of doing back in the day.

"It's my Nate Diaz moment. The Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor. This guy's taking everything I worked for. I wanted the Khamzat [Chimaev] fight, they gave it to Gilbert. I wanted the [Jorge] Masvidal fight. They gave it to Gilbert. Now they're talking about Gilbert fighting for a title... You want to give him everything that I want? I'm going to have to take it from him," said Belal Muhammad.

You can check out Belal Muhammad's comments from the 30:50 mark below:

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A lightweight scrap between Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush was originally scheduled to be the co-main event of UFC 288. But 'Do Bronx' had to pull out of the fight due to an injury.

UFC president Dana White recently announced that the new co-main event for the card will feature a five-round welterweight scrap between Muhammad and Burns, with huge title implications in the near future.


What did Nate Diaz say in his iconic callout?

After a one-year hiatus, Nate Diaz returned to action in December 2015 and defeated Michael Johnson in impressive fashion. In his post-fight octagon interview with Joe Rogan, Diaz called out Irish superstar Conor McGregor for a fight, in what has now become one of MMA's most iconic moments to date.

He said:

"Conor McGregor, you're taking everything I work for, motherf**ker! I'mma fight your f**king a**. You know what's the real fight. The real money fight. It's me. Not these clowns that you already punked at the press conference... You want that real s**t? It's right here!"

Check out the iconic callout below:

McGregor was supposed to fight Rafael dos Anjos for the lightweight belt at UFC 196 but the Brazilian withdrew from the fight due to an injury. Diaz stepped in as a short-notice replacement to take on the Irishman. On fight night, the Stockton native shocked the world as he became the first fighter to defeat McGregor in the UFC.

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