The co-main event of UFC 288 was canceled after Charles Oliveira pulled out of the fight against Beneil Dariush due to an injury. However, Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad stepped up to fight each other at the upcoming pay-per-view. UFC bantamweight star Sean O’Malley has praised the welterweight duo for accepting the fight on short notice.

Dana White found himself in a predicament after the Beneil Dariush vs Charles Oliveira fight was canceled. ‘Do Bronx’ addressed his withdrawal from the fight on social media, claiming to have gotten injured while wrestling practice. That fight has been postponed and will take place at UFC 289.

Gilbert Burns to take on Belal Muhammad in a 5-round fight at UFC 288

After the news broke out about the cancelation of the initial co-main event of UFC 288, ‘Durinho’ and ‘Remember the Name’ quickly expressed their urge to fight on May 6 on social media. As a result, the UFC informed the two men the only possible matchup was against each other, which they accepted without any hesitation.

It took a couple of days for the UFC brass to decide. But eventually, the fight was confirmed, and they also made it a five-round encounter. There are similar reasons why Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad chose to fight at UFC 288. They both wanted to fight Colby Covington, which explains their mutual desire to fight on May 6.

Sean O’Malley praises Burns and Muhammad

‘Suga’ recently discussed the new UFC 288 co-main event on the latest episode of the ‘TimboSugarShow’ on YouTube. He said, “Belal Muhammad vs Gilbert Burns – how f***in gangster is that?” O’Malley added, “These two bolts, short notice, not only accept the fight, but accept the fight and say, ‘I want five rounds.’ That’s gangster.” 

Sean O’Malley mentioned how tough Gilbert Burns was as a fighter after coming off a win at UFC 287 just over a couple of weeks ago. He also rated Belal Muhammad as a credible fighter as well. ‘Suga’ was asked to give his prediction for the fight. He said, “I don’t know. I don’t really have an early prediction for that.” O’Malley added, “I really like, actually I do, Gilbert Burns’ team… let’s go. But I really like Belal [Muhammad].”

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The Burns vs Muhammad fight is guaranteed to be a great watch. Many fans as well as fighters from various divisions in the UFC are excited to see them go head-to-head for five rounds. What do you think?

What are your predictions for the fight? Drop your comments below.

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