Belal Muhammad puts “evil” Colby Covington on notice: “You’re gonna get slapped”

Belal Muhammad is making no secret of his disdain for fellow UFC welterweight contender Colby Covington.

Muhammad is slated to take on No. 3-ranked welterweight contender Leon Edwards in the main event of UFC Vegas 21 this Saturday in Las Vegas—an opportunity he accepted on short-notice.

Muhammad will enter the fight with the No. 13 spot in the UFC welterweight rankings, but if he wins, he’l catapult into the top 10—perhaps even the top 5.

From there, Muhammad would be well positioned for more huge fights in the welterweight division, and he knows just who he’d like to fight next.

“I’m not going to be one of those guys that’s going to sit, especially if it’s Colby Covington,” Muhammad said at UFC Vegas 21 media day (via MMA Junkie). “After this fight, that’s who’s next and I hate that guy’s guts. If I ever see that guy in the street I’m hitting him.

“Obviously – that’s a fight I would want before Usman, because stylistically that’s a fight that makes sense and that’s going to prepare you for the Usman fight, who’s the champion. So for me, it’s just keeping the momentum going. If I could keep fighting, if God willing I’m healthy, I win this fight and if they wanna get me back here a month later against Colby, why not? I’m down.”

Suffice it to say that Muhammad is not a Covington fan.

Why? He views the former welterweight title challenger—who is known for crossing lines with his trash talk—as downright evil.

“I just hate evil people,” Muhammad said, explaining his beef with Covington. “You could sit there and say, ‘It’s a character, it’s that.’ But you wanna say the things that he says and the way that he talks about people, the way he disrespects people? I’m from Chicago so those types of people, we don’t let you talk like that. So if you say something like that about people I know, people I respect, you’re gonna get slapped, you’re gonna get hurt. It’s not gonna happen, so for me, this is a sport.

“It’s martial arts, so it’s about respecting people. … The way he’s disrespected religion, the way he’s disrespected Khabib who’s like the face of the Muslim MMA community. For him to do something like that and to think, ‘It’s all part of the act.’ This ain’t no act. When we see face to face, you’re gonna know that your act just got you beat up.”

How do you think Colby Covington will respond to these comments from Belal Muhammad?