NEW
Decoding the Future for Belal Muhammad Following Bonfim Defeat
After his third defeat in a row, Belal Muhammad needs to find direction for his career.
Normally, the decline of a world champion is a slow process. First, you see narrow decisions against opponents that used to be definitive wins. Then you may see a loss, but a comeback victory that attempts to delay the downfall. For Belal Muhammad, the wall hit sooner than many believed, and it could signal the downward spiral.
On Saturday night, Gabriel Bonfim won a unanimous decision. Muhammad dropped his third consecutive unanimous decision. In essence, not only is he losing, but the Chicago native is also struggling to make the fight close.
Belal Muhammad, UFC in Bind after UFC Vegas 118
What should the UFC do with him? After the fight, Muhammad took to social media to share his take.
"Alhamdillah for everything to be blessed to be stressed," Belal Muhammad began. "You donā€™t find out who you are when everything goes your way. You find out when it doesnā€™t. Grateful for the journey, grateful for the lessons. Iā€™ll be back...Thank you to all my supporters, my team, and family. Congrats, my brother, on his big win. His hard work paying off on his way to the title."
With that said, what should the UFC do? In previous years, three consecutive losses would place the fighter's tenure with the company in jeopardy. Since 2016, Muhammad has competed in a UFC cage. Over that decade, he's defeated Leon Edwards, Gilbert Burns, Stephen Thompson, and Demian Maia. Muhammad defeated Edwards for the welterweight title at UFC 304.
Belal Muhammad's Time is Running Out
In reality, time may not be on the fighter's side. Muhammad turns 38 next month and looks far closer to the end of his career than the beginning. As a result, does he want to cash out, take bigger fighters just as an opponent, or does he want to slowly build back towards title contention?
For years, UFC rankings have been as nebulous as they are irrelevant when it comes to who receives a title shot. Under those circumstances, Muhammad reeling off two or three wins can vault him back into contention.
