Belal Muhammad is feeling violent.
Nearly a year removed from his impressive title-winning performance against Leon Edwards in Manchester, ‘Remember The Name’ returns to the Octagon at UFC 315 this Saturday night, set to defend his welterweight crown against Aussie standout Jack Della Maddalena in Montreal.
“I’ve been dying. I’ve been waiting for my first title defense, and it’s finally here,” Muhammad said during the UFC 315 pre-fight press conference. “We’re only a couple of days away, and you’re about to see the greatest MMA performance you’ve ever seen in your life.”
Muhammad’s first fight as a UFC champion has been a long time coming, and the Chicago native is ready to relieve his pent-up aggression in The Great White North.
“He’s going to need the ref to save him on Saturday night when I break him,” Muhammad added. “He’s going to need the ref to pull me off him. That’s what he’s going to need saving from.”
Pretty tough talk for a guy with a paltry 20% finish rate inside the Octagon, but maybe we’ll see a more violent version of ‘Bully B’ in The 514.
Will Belal Muhammad snap JDM’s near-decade-long unbeaten streak?
Hoping to cut Muhammad’s title reign short, Maddalena walks into his first UFC championship opportunity with 17 straight wins, a streak that began all the way back in October 2016 under the Eternal MMA banner.
A couple of closely contested split decision wins against Bassil Hafez and Kevin Holland appeared to halt JDM’s title quest for the time being, but he quickly quelled claims that he wasn’t ready for the spotlight with a brutal beatdown of Gilbert Burns at UFC 299 in March.
