Being put on pedestal won't help Shavkat Rakhmonov despite near-unbreakable mental fortitude, says Belal Muhammad: "They come in there with nerves"

Belal Muhammad is confident about his chances of handing Shavkat Rakhmonov his first professional MMA defeat. Despite describing his path to victory, Muhammad admired Rakhmonov's tough mentality.

Rakhmonov was given the chance to challenge Muhammad for the welterweight title in the main event of UFC 310 last year. However, a foot infection forced the reigning champion to withdraw from the title fight, forcing another contender,, Ian Machado Garry, to step up on short notice and take on the Kazakh in a title eliminator bout.

Many in the MMA community expect Rakhmonov and Muhammad to square off inside the cage this year. However, there has been no official confirmation yet. Addressing the potential matchup during a recent interview with Barstool Sports Chicago, 'Remember the Name' said:

''When you’re fighting a guy like Shavkat where they put him on this pedestal to be this undefeated crazy guy, I see holes in his game in the same way I saw holes in Leon’s game. I think Leon’s a better striker than Shavkat, but mentally I think Shavkat’s a lot stronger, I don’t see him breaking mentally.''

Muhammad went on to issue a dire warning to Rakhmonov, saying that he is not scared of 'Nomad', in contrast to previous opponents who went into fights with the latter knowing they were up against an undefeated fighter.

''The biggest thing for him is, now you’re fighting a guy that’s not afraid of you. Everybody he fights they come in there with nerves and they’re afraid. For me, I’m gonna be in his face the whole time and it’s gonna be the same resolve, another guy breaking.''

Check out Belal Muhammad's comments below (via Home of Fight's X post):

Muhammad captured the 170-pound belt from Leon Edwards in front of the latter's home audience in Manchester at UFC 304 by putting on an all-round dominant display. Meanwhile, Rakhmonov solidified his position as the next title challenger by defeating Garry via unanimous decision.

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Youssef Zalal discusses being unable to break Shavkat Rakhmonov's streak

Before his unanimous decision win against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 310, Shavkat Rakhmonov was on a three-fight submission streak.

Another fighter holding the same record is Youssef Zalal, who recently defeated Calvin Kattar via unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 102 this past weekend. During the post-fight press conference, Zalal voiced his displeasure in being unable to submit Kattar, saying:

''Bro you know what's the crazy part? Me and Shavkat have the most submission streak. I was like, f**k I want to beat that! I want to be the first guy... I want to be [among] those names, man. When they pop that s**t, I want to be there. But, I'll be there."

Check out Youssef Zalal's comments below (7:36):