Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad reveal the circumstances leading to their UFC 288 showdown 

Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad stunned the MMA world by agreeing to face each other at UFC 288. The two men are campaigning for a title fight, but with former interim welterweight champion Colby Covington scheduled to face reigning champion Leon Edwards, they have no choice but to fight each other.

The bout will mark a quick turnaround for 'Durinho'. UFC 288 will be on May 6, but the Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist fought not too long ago at UFC 287 on April 8. Both Burns and Muhammad revealed uncanny similarities in how their matchup came to fruition. It was all due to a mutual desire to face Colby Covington.

After UFC 288 lost the Charles Oliveira vs. Beneil Dariush matchup as its co-main event, both Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad reached out to the UFC. They both requested a bout against Colby Covington. Unfortunately, the two men were told that 'Chaos' was already scheduled to face Leon Edwards for the 170 lbs title.

The promotion subsequently told the two men that the only available matchup was against each other, which they both readily accepted. In a written interview with MMAFighting, the two men detailed their experience on how their scheduled matchup came to be.

Belal Muhammad recounted it as follows:

"Last week, I was in Canada and I was doing charity work out there, working with an organization and I just saw that the Beneil Dariush fight got cancelled. I said oh crap. I hit up my manager and asked where's Colby at? Let's try to get Colby on the card. He hit me back the next day 'Colby's not going to do it but Gilbert will.' I was like OK, let's go."

Meanwhile, Burns' experience was as follows:

"We were trying to get the Colby fight but then I talked to Hunter and they said no, Colby's fighting for the title but I have Belal Muhammad. He's another one that wants to fight. I said sure, I'll fight him, I don't care. That’s how the negotiating started."

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What have Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad done lately?

Gilbert Burns recently took part in the UFC 287 co-main event. He faced now-retired 'BMF' champion Jorge Masvidal, scoring a dominant unanimous decision win. The matchup was uncanny in that it saw Gilbert Burns, who was and remains ranked as the number-five 170'er, face someone who was ranked outside the top 10.

Meanwhile, Belal Muhammad hasn't fought since October last year after handing Sean Brady his first-ever loss. Not only did 'Remember the Name' emerge victorious, he also earned his first finish in three years.