Dricus Du Plessis is riding high after his thrilling victory over Sean Strickland at UFC 312, and the South African star isn’t shying away from bold challenges. Fresh off his championship win, DDP has set his sights on Alex Pereira, confidently claiming he has what it takes to defeat the Brazilian powerhouse. But Pereira isn’t the only fighter on Du Plessis’ radar—he also took a jab at reigning welterweight kingpin Belal Muhammad.

Speaking with Ariel Helwani, Du Plessis didn’t hold back.“If I fight Belal Muhammad, it would be unfair. He’d need someone else to help him,” he declared. But the verbal jabs didn’t stop there. DDP also dismissed the idea of Muhammad ever moving up to middleweight, adding, “I step on his head, and it’s over.”

But what prompted such a response from the South African juggernaut? Well, it was Muhammad who fired scathing remarks about the UFC 312 main event. Appearing on The Stretch podcast, he downplayed the level of competition at 185 pounds. “I think 185 is probably the easiest weight class [to fight in], besides Khamzat [Chimaev],” Muhammad said. “If you look at that UFC 312 main event, you’re like, ‘Bro, Strickland and Du Plessis suck.'”

This all came at a time when both the reigning champions at 170lbs and 185lbs were eyeing double-champ status. However, in the same interview, Muhammad made it clear that he had no intention of facing his close friend, Islam Makhachev. Instead, he saw middleweight as the easier challenge—particularly against divisional champion Du Plessis.

Not everyone shares Muhammad’s confidence, though. Surging UFC welterweight Joaquin Buckley, who has competed at middleweight, cautioned that moving up might not be the wisest decision. On his YouTube channel, ‘New Mansa’ issued a stark warning:

“Belal Muhammad talking about he wants to move up, he could be a double champ. Belal, I’m just going to warn you right now that you don’t have the tools nor the weapons to beat a person like Dricus. You’re not going to be able to take buddy down.”

Despite the warnings, Muhammad remains steadfast in his belief that he can beat DDP. But how does he plan to pull it off? Here’s his strategy.

Belal Muhammad weighs in on his strategy to slay Dricus Du Plessis

According to Belal Muhammad, his relentless pace and technical prowess will give him the edge over Dricus Du Plessis, who’s known for his unorthodox yet effective striking. The welterweight champ laid out a lengthy strategy in a social media post, even offering a round-by-round prediction of the fight.

He wrote, “I’d come out him with a 1-2 then he’d wing an overhand I’ll duck it change levels and take him down then he’d shrimp and get the under hook to get out but he’ll be to weak to get up so then I’ll hit him with ground and pound for the rest of round 1. Round 2 starts and I come out with a flying knee he shells up then I hit him with the zabit back trip then point and laugh at him (this makes him mad) he gets up and charges forward winging punches at me I slide out of the way with ease then hit him with a 1-2 then he gets frustrated shoots for a takedown I defend with ease but now he’s tired and stays on his knees I kick him to the body while he’s on the ground. End of round 2.”

The 170lbs champ believes he can wear down Du Plessis with constant takedowns and fluid movement, setting him up for a submission finish in Round 3. He continued, “Round 3 starts and he’s distraught; he can’t hit me, he can’t take me down, so then he tries spinning stuff. I back up at the right time, end up taking his back, he lets me under the chin out of frustration, then I put him to sleep… and new double champ.”

It’s clear Muhammad is serious about making the move to middleweight, and he’s already got a plan in place. The potential collision between the two could be on the horizon—but whether it happens or not depends on Dana White’s next move. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.