Top UFC welterweight shuts down fan after claims of being dominated by a 'prime' Ben Askren

A fan hit out at UFC welterweight Belal Muhammad on X (formerly Twitter), and caught the attention of the UFC star. Originally, Belal Muhammad replied to an interview in which fellow UFC welterweight contender, Colby Covington, termed him a "racist."

Belal, in a reply to the clip, wrote:

"Colby Karen Covington"

A user, who is presumably an MMA fan, then replied to Belal and said:

"Askren in his prime would out hump you"

This was a multilayered attack from the fan. On one hand, they stated that they believed that Ben Askren, in his prime, was a superior wrestler to Belal Muhammad. On the other hand, the user also insinuated that Belal's fights were not the most entertaining, something he has been accused of in the past.

Belal Muhammad appeared to take the comment to mean he was a boring fighter who wrestled his way to decision wins, and retorted:

"I’ve had zero attempted takedowns my last two fights and dominated both you dork"

While this could also mean that 'Remember the Name' saw himself as a mixed martial artist and not just a pure wrestler, it's more likely that he was defending himself against the notion that his fights aren't as crowd pleasing as they could be.

Check out the interaction on X here:

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Belal Muhammad's next fight yet to be announced, eyeing Kamaru Usman matchup at UFC 296

Belal Muhammad's last appearance in the octagon was against Gilbert Burns at UFC 288 in May of 2023. Muhammad secured the unanimous decision victory, and said that he will wait to get a title shot as his next bout.

Considering he is on a 9-fight win streak, calling for a title bout is certainly warranted. The UFC, however, have been insistent on the idea of Colby Covington being the next challenger to Leon Edwards' 170 lbs strap, even though 'Chaos' has been inactive for more than a year.

As a result, Muhammad may have to sit out longer than he would like if he is stern on waiting for a title shot. Judging by an interview Muhammad did with Jesse on Fire, he has now turned his attention to Kamaru Usman. He said:

"I think that Kamaru as champion, he beat Colby twice. I think that fight makes all the sense in the world. He was a guy that people considered the GOAT from the welterweight division. I go out there and starch him, beat him dominantly, there's no denying me after that."