"I hate his guts" - Frustrated Belal Muhammad lashes out at Leon Edwards for "downplaying achievements" 

Belal Muhammad is closing in on a year of inactivity as he last competed at UFC 288 last May, defeating Gilbert Burns via unanimous decision. The No.2-ranked welterweight is 9-0 (1) over his past ten bouts, with his no contest coming against Leon Edwards at UFC Fight Night 187.

While 'Rocky' has since gone on to capture the welterweight title, 'Remember the Name' has angled for a title opportunity, with his calls falling on deaf ears. Muhammad recently expressed that he has developed a hatred for Edwards in an interview with Mike Owens of Middle Easy, stating:

"I hate his guts. The last fighter I fought that I had a dislike for was Sean Brady and it was just because he was talking all this trash and it was one of those things where I'm like, 'bro, I don't even know you, but you're acting like you're something else'. For the Leon fight, they're trying to avoid me. Him trying to act like - downplaying my accomplishments and telling me I don't deserve it, I never earned it, that stuff does nothing but piss me off and it's fueling me with hatred for this guy and I just can't wait to get in there and get my hands on him."

Muhammad also addressed Dana White's comments that Edwards accepted three opponents for UFC 300, claiming:

"I think it's more so Dana trying to hype up a champion that can't hype up himself. A guy that doesn't promote himself so Dana White being the promoter that he is has to make it seem like Leon Edwards is this big guy, this beast, that said yes to three dominant guys and they all turned him down because they're afraid of him because Leon is so good, but Leon su*ks. He su*ks at fighting, he su*ks at talking, he su*ks at promotion and when I fight him, I'm going to show you guys how bad he is."

Check out Belal Muhammad's comments on Leon Edwards below:

While the No.2-ranked welterweight continues to angle for a title shot, the promotion has yet to reveal who will be the next to challenge for the title. Rumors have, however, suggested that Edwards will return to the octagon at UFC 304, which will likely take place in July.

Leon Edwards' manager reveals Belal Muhammad was not among three opponents offered for UFC 300

While Dana White revealed that three opponents turned down a title opportunity against Leon Edwards at UFC 300, he did not share the names of the fighters.

Despite his silence on the opponents, rumors began to circulate that Belal Muhammad was not among the names offered, which 'Rocky's manager Tim Simpson confirmed during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, stating:

"I thought it was Belal Muhammad, he's right there. That's what I kind of said to Hunter in the back. I was like, 'Belal?' and he was like, 'well, we're going to see' and I was like, 'what does that mean because who else is there?' and then as we're getting to eight to ten weeks out, they said 'what about Khamzat Chimaev?'... Call back a couple days later, 'would you fight Islam Makhachev at 170 for the title?'... Then they said, 'listen, can we rely on him if we go to Shavkat [Rakhmonov]?'"

Check out Tim Simpson's comments on the UFC not offering Belal Muhammad as an opponent for Leon Edwards below:

Tim Simpson revealed there were no discussions about the matchup while claiming that it likely was due to the fact it would not be a marquee event. Despite not competing on the card, Belal Muhammad was present at UFC 300, where he called on the promotion to give him a call to compete at UFC 301, UFC 302, UFC 303, or UFC 304.