“I shouldn’t have said it,” Gilbert Burns apologizes to Belal Muhammad after shutting down rival’s claim for title fight

Gilbert Burns has apologised to Belal Muhammad ahead of his UFC 299 showdown saying that Muhammad deserves the welterweight title shot.

“I shouldn’t have said it,” Gilbert Burns apologizes to Belal Muhammad after shutting down rival’s claim for title fight

Gilbert Burns apologises to Belal Muhammad (Image via Imago)

Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad had a heated dispute which finally seemed to have resolved. Burns recently made some comments in his latest interview ahead of his fight at UFC 299, apologizing to Muhammad. Here is what happened:

Gilbert Burns recently did an interview with Renato Moicano on his YouTube channel. There he talked about Belal Muhammad and his upcoming title fight. Burns said: 

I got hurt and then he was talking so much. But I shouldn’t say the way I did. I apologize, I think he does deserves the title shot even though I don’t like the guy very much because I lost to the guy. I was injured, and the guy was kind of like, ‘Oh, I beat Gilbert Burns this way, short notice’.
Gilbert Burns on Renato Moicano’s YouTube channel
YouTube video

The UFC 288 co-main event between Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad was a five-round, non-title fight. It took place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey last year in May. Muhammad won the fight by unanimous decision. This was his fifth consecutive victory and it earned him the welterweight title shot. Meanwhile, Gilbert Burns will fight Jack Della Maddalena this March at UFC 299. The fight will take place at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.

FS Video

Belal Muhammad is waiting for a rematch against UFC welterweight champion, Leon Edwards. The two first faced off back in March 2021 at UFC Vegas 21. The fight was called off after Edwards accidentally poked Muhammad in the eye, preventing Muhammad from continuing. Now, Muhammad is reportedly training in Dagestan, Russia for the much-awaited rematch.

Fans react to Gilbert Burns apologizing to Belal Muhammad

Gilbert Burns’ public apology to Belal Muhammad caught the attention of fans on social media. People went to the comment section to share their reactions to the video. Here are some of the reactions from X:

Glbert Burns
Gilbert Burns got injured against Belal Muhammad (Image Courtesy – Sports Illustrated)
https://twitter.com/_HonestMMA/status/1764713850090180921

Many fans appreciated Gilbert Burns for apologizing to Belal Muhammad. Others accused him of retracing his previous statements because of the backlash he received. Others expressed excitement for another showdown between the two fighters, this time for the title belt.

In case you missed it!