Belal Muhammad sounds off on Khamzat Chimaev’s critics; explains the significance of his UFC 273 win over Gilbert Burns

Belal Muhammad has had his says regarding the criticism that’s being directed at Khamzat Chimaev by certain sections of the MMA community. Earlier this month, the undefeated Chimaev entered his UFC 273 fight against Gilbert Burns with a considerable amount of hype.

Chimaev beat Burns via unanimous decision in a thrilling back-and-forth fight. Regardless, given how close the fight was, Chimaev’s detractors have been claiming that he’s undeserving of the hype. Speaking to ESPN MMA’s Marc Raimondi, Belal Muhammad addressed this and stated:

“I thought he (Chimaev) fought great. As I said, people are so weird with the way they think. They’re putting him on such a big pedestal like he’s a Marvel character. He’s gonna go in there and knock out Gilbert Burns with one punch. I’m like, Gilbert Burns is number two in the world. Gilbert Burns almost finished (UFC welterweight champion) Kamaru Usman. He could’ve been a champion."

"And then, so, he goes out there, then he doesn’t finish Gilbert Burns in the first round. So, now he’s fake, and he’s not as good as everybody thinks he is. I think that we learned more from him having a war like that and showing how tough he was.”

Muhammad credited both fighters for landing and absorbing thunderous strikes in their three-round war. He also lauded Chimaev for being tactical by steering clear of risky ground exchanges with Burns, who’s a multi-time Brazilian jiu jitsu world champion.

Muhammad praised Chimaev for being relaxed despite the immense pressure on him to live up to the hype in his high-profile fight against Burns. The 33-year-old said that Chimaev proved that he belongs among the welterweight elite.

Furthermore, he indicated that he had no hate towards ‘Borz’. Muhammad added that he surely wants to fight Chimaev and believes that he can beat the Chechnya-born Swedish fighter. Moreover, reiterating his appreciation for Chimaev, Muhammad asserted that “the kid's legit.”

Watch Belal Muhammad’s conversation with Marc Raimondi in the video below:

---

Belal Muhammad could be on a collision course with Khamzat Chimaev

Belal Muhammad defeated Vicente Luque via unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN: Luque vs. Muhammad 2 on April 16. Muhammad subsequently expressed interest in facing Leon Edwards, Colby Covington, or Khamzat Chimaev next. Meanwhile, UFC president Dana White and Chimaev have hinted that the latter’s likely to fight Covington next.

Nevertheless, it’s believed that Colby Covington could potentially turn down the Khamzat Chimaev fight if he isn’t guaranteed a title shot with a win over him. On that note, it’s highly likely that if the Chimaev-Covington matchup fails to materialize, ‘Borz’ could end up facing Belal Muhammad next.