After back-to-back losses, Muhammad returns with title in his sights

Belal Muhammad lands a body kick on Vicente Luque. [UFC]
Belal Muhammad lands a body kick on Vicente Luque. [UFC]

Former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad (37, United States), now a new father, is looking to revive his title run.

Muhammad, ranked fifth in the UFC welterweight division, headlines "UFC Fight Night: Muhammad vs. Bonfim" on Sunday against No. 11 Gabriel Bonfim (28, Brazil) at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event begins at 9 a.m. Korean Standard Time.

Despite back-to-back losses, 2025 was a landmark year for Muhammad (24-5-1 NC) — his daughter was born. "It gives you a purpose in life," he said. "Before, fighting was everything to me, but now the happiest moment of my day is coming home after training and seeing my daughter."

That new motivation has rekindled his drive to reclaim the belt. Muhammad dominated Leon Edwards to win the championship in 2024, but suffered two consecutive defeats last year — losing the title by decision to Jack Della Maddalena and then falling by decision to Ian Machado Garry. "The belt is always my goal," he said. "I fight for my family and to prove I'm the best in the world. To do that, I need the title."

Standing across from him will be Bonfim, who is riding a four-fight UFC winning streak at 19-1. He began boxing at age 14 and brings elite jiu-jitsu to the cage. Of his 19 wins, 17 have come by finish — 13 of them by submission.

Bonfim acknowledged that facing a former champion is "the biggest challenge of my career so far," but sees this as the ideal moment to strike. "Muhammad is on a two-fight losing streak, so now is the perfect time to fight him," he said.

Muhammad is confident he will shut down the challenge and return to the top. "He's a young, hungry fighter who wants my spot, but he picked the wrong guy," Muhammad said of Bonfim. "I'm a completely different style from anyone he's ever faced. He's going to get finished."

Overseas oddsmakers currently project the bout as nearly a 50-50 toss-up.

In the co-main event, UFC middleweight (83.9kg) No. 4 Brendan "All In" Allen (30, United States) meets "Golden Boy" Edmen Shahbazyan (28, United States). Shahbazyan had originally been scheduled to face "Iron Turtle" Park Jun-yong in April before Park withdrew due to injury.

Allen (26-7) is on a two-fight winning streak after stopping Reinier de Ridder, a former ONE Championship double champion who had been riding a four-fight UFC winning streak. Shahbazyan (16-5) has won three straight and is looking to crack the rankings again.

"UFC Fight Night: Muhammad vs. Bonfim" airs live on tvN Sports and Tving starting at 9 a.m. Sunday.


yjc@heraldcorp.com