Belal Muhammad tried to beat Jack Della Maddalena at his own game at UFC 315.
Well, it didn’t work out as the former UFC Welterweight Champion had hoped, with Jack Della Maddalena putting his hands on Muhammad, outboxing him over the course of five rounds to win the title by unanimous decision.
While he’s one of the most well-rounded welterweights on the planet, Muhammad is known more for his wrestling and constant pressure, which has shut down strikers like Stephen Thompson and Leon Edwards.
The champion surprised a lot of people at UFC 315 by not shooting for more takedowns against Della Maddalena. Instead, Muhammad stood his ground in the pocket and ate Della Maddalena’s best shots, losing influencer SteveWillDoIt a $600K bet.
Weeks removed from his UFC title loss and facing much criticism after, Muhammad has broken his silence on the performance.
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Belal Muhammad says his game plan went out the window against Jack Della Maddalena
Looking back on the fight, Muhammad said he initially planned a wrestling-heavy approach for Della Maddalena. JDM has struggled with grapplers before, being taken down by Gilbert Burns seven times in his previous fight.
“For us, our strategy was to take down Jack,” Muhammad said on Remember The Show (h/t: Championship Rounds).
“It wasn’t to go blow-for-blow with them, brawl-for-brawl with them.
“It’s a weird moment when you’re training something so much and you’re getting better at something. I think my striking has grown so much. When I was saying that in the lead-up, I wasn’t lying about it.
I could box with them. I could strike with them.
“I went out there and I just felt good,” Muhammad continued.
“I still think I’m the best in the world. I was like, bro, I could strike with this guy [and] people are coming at me telling me I can’t strike with him.”
Belal Muhammad makes peace with UFC 315 result after going ‘against the game plan’
Muhammad believes the title fight with Della Maddalena was a lot closer than what people think, believing it could have come down to one round or one exchange.
Even so, Muhammad takes the loss on the chin, knowing he gave it his all on the feet rather than on the ground.
“Obviously, we lost the fight, but we stood toe-to-toe with him,” Muhammad continued.
“I went against the game plan. I went on my own. At the end of the day, I’m gonna live with that.
“But it came down to one round, maybe one exchange that could’ve swayed the judges one way or swayed the judges that way.
Was my game plan wrong? It could’ve went the other way,” Muhammad added.
“Could it have been an easier fight? It could’ve. But at the end of the day, I love to fight.”