Belal Muhammad has always represented Palestine whenever he competes in the UFC, but now he’s hoping the promotion can rectify a problem related to his profile on the company website.
While athletes on the UFC’s website feature flags from their home nations next to their names, it was brought to Muhammad’s attention that his was left blank. On Thursday, the reigning UFC welterweight champion sent out a plea to UFC CEO Dana White to fix that problem, especially after he championed allowing fighters to once again carry flags to the octagon.
“People keep asking me, ‘Where’s your flag?’ I kept getting multiple messages from it, and I was just assuming it was a mistake, but it’s still not addressed,” Muhammad said on a video posted to Twitter. “So I’ll address it and hope that Dana addresses it as well and fixes it. Because Dana said he’s all about free speech, he’s all about people supporting who they want to support and not muting or silencing anybody.
“I’m hoping that the UFC fixes this issue and puts my flag next to my name so the people that I represent, the people that I fight for, and the people that I train for will see their flag next to their champion’s name.”
Muhammad, who was born in the United States to Palestinian parents, has been an outspoken advocate supporting the people affected by the ongoing war in Gaza. He’s also represented Palestine throughout his UFC career, carrying the flag to the cage in past fights.
In fact, Muhammad previously told MMA Fighting that he was genuinely excited to carry the Palestinian flag to the octagon with him for his first title defense, which is now set for UFC 315 in May when he faces Jack Della Maddalena.
“For me to be able to carry that flag with the belt, to be the champion, it just gives them something to be proud of,” Muhammad said. “Something they can point at and say ‘that’s my flag! That’s my countryman! That’s my guy!’ It just gives these kids something bigger to dream about.”
When he claimed the title this past July with a dominant victory over Leon Edwards in England, Muhammad was overwhelmed by videos and photos he received from people in Palestine celebrating his win.
That only strengthened his resolve to continue representing Palestine whenever he has the opportunity but particularly when he’s competing on the biggest stage in combat sports in the UFC.
“There was literally a refugee camp that had the fights on,” Muhammad said. “They sent me a video of it and all the kids cheering it and watching it while they were there. Those are the real heroes. Those are the guys that I do it for. To get a cheer, to get a smile from one of these kids, to have them look up to me when I’m looking up to them. They’re the strongest people in the world, they’re the most resilient people in the world.
“To see the stuff that they’re going through and the stuff that they’re still grateful for. They’re so grateful just to be alive everyday. They’re still grateful to be able to fight and still be able to live when I’m sitting there, I just fought 25 minutes. It’s nothing. They’re fighting to be alive. They’re fighting everyday to do this thing that we take for granted here in America.”
Update: Muhammad says the flag will be restored to his profile.
