UFC 313's Ignacio Bahamondes motivated by teammate Belal Muhammad's success

Ignacio Bahamondes has seen first hand what his team can produce with hard work and talent, and that is a UFC championship title.

Training alongside newly crowned UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, Bahamondes (16-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC) has picked up plenty of inspiration to make his dream come to a reality. “La Jaula,” a 27-year-old title hopeful in the UFC’s lightweight division, gets his first big step towards the belt, as he takes on his first ever ranked opponent – Jalin Turner. The two battle it out on the main card of this Saturday’s UFC 313 (pay-per-view, ESPNews/Disney+, ESPN+) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Bahamondes is eager for the opportunity and is entering a fight more motivated than ever.

“Of course, of course, he showed me the path himself,” Bahamondes told Hablemos MMA in Spanish when asked if Muhammad has given him more motivation. “He showed me how it needs to be done, and he had the toughest path of them all. He had a way tougher path than anyone. A lot of people won UFC belts much easier than him. He had 10 consecutive wins and was without a title. That’s stupid.

“He showed me that with pure hard work and consistency, I can make it, too. It’s just a matter of time. I’m relaxed. I don’t want it tomorrow or next year. I just worry about doing things the right way, because if I keep doing things the way I’ve been doing them, I will get there, and I will be UFC champion.”

Bahamondes played a role in Muhammad’s training camp for his title winning performance against then champion Leon Edwards in July 2024. He was one of Muhammad’s main sparring partners at Valle Flow Striking.

The Chilean fighter, who doesn’t like toying around with UFC titles, remembers very well what it felt like told to hold an undisputed UFC title.

“The truth is that I’ve only touched one belt, and that was Belal’s, and only one time because I have a rule: I’ll never hold a UFC belt until it’s my own,” Bahamondes said. “Julianna (Peña)’s belt I did not touch, same with Yair (Rodriguez), but with Belal it was different, because he hit me every sparring session for that fight. I told him, ‘I’m part of this victory. I don’t want a picture with it. I just want to hold it and look at it.’ So I grabbed it, I felt how much it weighed, and I gave it back to him.”

The feeling of holding a UFC title did not feel foreign to Bahamondes. He’s envisioned himself as UFC champion and envisioned himself beating Turner (14-8 MMA, 7-5 UFC) this Saturday, and taking a spot in the UFC official lightweight rankings.

“You know, when I grabbed it, it felt like it belonged, I don’t know,” Bahamondes said. “I felt like it was mine. I didn’t feel like it was something new, like when someone returns your phone. It felt very normal, so let’s make it happen.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.