Belal Muhammad Claims Colby Covington Sought Restraining Order for RAF 13

Longtime UFC welterweight rivals Belal Muhammad and Colby Covington are finally set to square off, though their meeting will take place on the wrestling mats rather than inside the octagon. The two are scheduled to headline RAF 13 this Friday at the Watco Center in Coral Gables, Florida.

Muhammad picked up his first RAF victory this past July by defeating former UFC fighter Ben Askren, which was followed by a heated press conference confrontation with Covington. Speaking to MMA Fighting, Muhammad claimed that Covington has taken steps to ensure no physical conflict occurs outside of their scheduled match.

"He’s already trying to put restraining orders on anything happening, so now I’m going to go on the mat and I’m going to beat him up in his world," Muhammad told MMA Fighting. "We’ll just say that we’re getting orders that if we hit him or something like that happens, that police [will be there]. At the end of the day, I’m a professional, I’m going to go out there and smash him the right way."

Although their feud never materialized into a UFC fight, Muhammad made it clear that he views the wrestling bout with the same gravity. "I’ve been waiting a long time for it," Muhammad said. "It’s not going to be a fight, but wrestling inside the trenches, it is a fight. When you’ve got a coward on one side, he’s going to wither."