UFC welterweight kingpin Belal Muhammad is one of the most unpopular stars in the entire promotion, perhaps in the history of the sport. After all, ‘Bully B’s grappling-heavy fighting style and unfailing fondness for decisions have stigmatized him among fans. But fellow 170-pounder Adam Fugitt feels that the champ is perhaps unfairly criticized by the fandom, as he told our own Andrew Whitelaw in an Exclusive ES interview.

“I mean he may not get the finishes that fans want to see. But, well, he’s gonna, you know, basically grind you into nothing, you know, for five rounds. And who knows if he doesn’t develop that Khabib style, like ‘Oh I can pin you here and I’m going to just beat on you until the ref goes- yeah that’s not intelligent defense’. So, you know, that’s always in his cards,” Fugitt said.

Khabib Nurmagomedov, like Muhammad, relied almost entirely on his grappling. But the difference was that ‘The Eagle’ used his legendary strength and ability to control opponents to ground and pound his opponents into oblivion. On the other hand, ‘Bully B’ likes to keep top control when he gets his opponents on the ground and is happy to work from the dominant position to win rounds, but doesn’t exactly go for the kill like Nurmagomedov.

However, Fugitt felt that this shouldn’t take away from the welterweight champ’s excellence and status as the top dog since he was an absolute beast in the Octagon, even if he doesn’t often end fights early.

“You have to prepare for five rounds of just a dog fight because he’ll go in there and he’ll be on you every second. So yeah, he’s definitely earned that title as the champion,” he added. But the Palestinian-American has the opportunity to turn around the narrative surrounding him in his next fight.

How can the Shavkat Rakhmonov fight change Belal Muhammad’s perception among fans?

Belal Muhammad’s next fight will probably be the most important of his career. After all, he will face the undefeated Kazakh phenom, Shavkat Rakhmonov sometime this year. And it is safe to say that ‘Nomad’ is the exact opposite of Muhammad. The Kazakh has not only won every fight and has finished everyone but one in all the fights he has ever been in.

While Muhammad is the better grappler, Rakhmonov too has a pretty solid wrestling base and is a better striker than the champ. Not to mention both men have extremely high fight IQs and indomitable wills, all of which have made their contest an extremely interesting one for fans.

If Muhammad actually beats Rakhmonov, who is currently the boogeyman of the division, it would go a long way toward rehabilitating ‘Bully B’s reputation among fans and moving it closer to what Fugitt said about him in our Exclusive ES interview. And if the champ finishes Rakhmonov, the magnitude of the victory will probably make the famously fickle fight fans forget their earlier gripes against Muhammad. What do you think about Adam Fugitt’s opinion of Belal Muhammad?