Belal Muhammad: Kamaru Usman too 'chicken' to fight

Belal Muhammad wanted to face Kamaru Usman next, but claims fellow former UFC champion is too "chicken" to meet in the octagon. On June 6, Muhammad (24-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) meets Gabriel Bonfim in the main event of UFC Fight Night 278 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas. It's not Muhammad's first choice, but once he heard his options were Bonfim (19-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) or Usman (21-4 MMA, 16-3 UFC), he knew what was coming.

"Obviously, it was one of those where they were like, 'Yeah, it's either gonna be Gabriel Bonfim or Kamaru. ' I was like, 'Alright, so it's gonna be Gabriel Bonfim,'" Muhammad told MMA Junkie. "Like, there's no need to even say Kamaru because I know he's not gonna fight.

So, for me now it's just getting a fight, getting a win. I can't pick and choose. When you lost your last fight, nothing else matters.

" Muhammad is coming off back-to-back losses. His first was dropping the welterweight title to Jack Della Maddalena in a Fight of the Night at UFC 315, followed by a loss against top contender Ian Machado Garry a few months later at UFC Fight Night 265. While Muhammad says he may not have much room to pick and choose his opponents, given his recent results, that won't stop him from criticizing "The Nigerian Nightmare," with whom he shares management in Ali Abdelaziz.