His nickname might be “Remember the Name,” but Belal Muhammad’s performance in the co-main event of UFC 288 shouted to the rooftops for people to put some respect on his name as he earned himself a shot at the UFC welterweight title.
Muhammad comprehensively defeated Brazilian contender Gilbert Burns at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey to earn a landslide unanimous decision and leave no doubt over his title credentials at 170 pounds.
Put simply, Muhammad dominated the fight. He continually switched between southpaw and orthodox stances to keep Burns guessing, and controlled the range using a combination of punches and powerful body kicks that appeared to take their toll on Burns as the fight progressed.
It left Burns frustrated and confused as the Brazilian struggled to make any headway in the bout, and eventually led to a clear decision victory on the scorecards after the full five-round duration.
After earning the unanimous decision victory with scores of 50-45, 49-46, 49-46, Muhammad issued a statement of intent to the two men set to battle for the welterweight title later this year, defending champion Leon Edwards and former interim champ Colby Covington.
“Leon and Colby! I’m coming for both you guys!”
UFC 288: Official results
MAIN CARD
- Aljamain Sterling def. Henry Cejudo via split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) – for bantamweight title
- Belal Muhammad def. Gilbert Burns via unanimous decision (50-45, 49-46, 49-46)
- Yan Xiaonan def. Jessica Andrade via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:20
- Movsar Evloev def. Diego Lopes via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Charles Jourdain def. Kron Gracie via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Matt Frevola def. Drew Dober via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:08
- Kennedy Nzechuwu def. Devin Clark via technical submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 2:28
- Khaos Williams def. Rolando Bedoya via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
- Virna Jandiroba def. Marina Rodriquez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
EARLY PRELIMS
- Parker Porter def. Braxton Smith via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:10
- Ikram Aliskerov def. Phil Hawes via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:10
- Claudio Ribeiro def. Joseph Holmes via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 3:21