Belal Muhammad finally realized his dream on Saturday night after putting on a suffocating performance to beat Leon Edwards and become welterweight champion in the UFC 304 main event.
While the win didn’t come quite as easily as he predicted, Muhammad delivered on his promise that he would prove his superiority and he did that round after round. From a slew of takedowns to effective striking that kept Edwards off balance all night long, Muhammad showcased why he’s been calling for his title shot for the past two years before finally getting his opportunity.
There was no doubt when the fight ended that Muhammad did enough to win with the judges scoring the fight 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46 as he dethrones Edwards and becomes UFC champion.
“It sounds like all the people booing right now got a lot of tears coming out of their eyes,” Muhammad said addressing the raucous crowd in Manchester. “I see you guys with watery eyes right now. This is for my family, for my people in Palestine.”
It was clear throughout the fight that Muhammad and his coaches put together the perfect strategy to deal with Edwards as he got in his face from the opening exchange and rarely gave him any time to breathe. Edwards was constantly stuck fighting off his back foot and if not for a couple of reversals on the ground, he could have potentially been shut out on the scorecards.
It took only a matter of seconds into the fight for Muhammad to rush forward and get in deep on a takedown before tossing Edwards to the canvas. Muhammad had short lived success with Edwards scrambling back to his feet before moving into the clinch against the cage.
Once the fighters separated, Edwards started settling into a rhythm with some strong kicks and a nasty uppercut but Muhammad kept coming right back at him. Just when it looked like Edwards was getting the better of the striking exchanges, Muhammad blasted him with an uppercut that wobbled the champion.
Muhammad followed that with another big takedown as he stayed in Edwards’ face, never giving him a moment to breathe. Time and again, Muhammad was putting on constant pressure, which included another huge slam that dumped Edwards directly on his head.
While Edwards did manage a late reversal in the second round, Muhammad was just tossing him around the cage and controlling the pace throughout.
Another takedown followed to start round three but Edwards slipped free this time and he actually took Muhammad’s back as the welterweights were locked against the cage. Edwards continued to work for a potential submission with Muhammad concentrating on his defense.
Muhammad stayed patient to get a restart in the fourth, which led to another rapid-fire combination on the feet and then going for another takedown, which led to him taking the back on the ground. The challenger peppered away with punches after locking on the body triangle with Edwards just stuck in a bad spot.
With five minutes remaining, Edwards had to shift into desperation mode but instead he found himself back on the ground with Muhammad latched onto his back. Muhammad got the body triangle and started looking for a choke and a face crank as he continued dishing out punishment.
It was like Edwards was sinking in quicksand until he finally exploded off the ground and blasted Muhammad with an elbow that opened up a nasty cut on his face. Still it was too little, too late with Muhammad raising his hands in victory as the fight came to a close.
Over three years since an eye poke ended their first meeting, Muhammad finally got his revenge and became champion with a truly impressive win over Edwards across all five rounds.
“I got the best team in the world,” Muhammad said about his win. “We study to the core. We get better every single fight. He said it right, I’m not Khabib [Nurmagomedov], I’m not [Georges St-Pierre], I’m Belal Muhammad. I’m my own man. I’m a world champion.”
As for Edwards, it was a disappointing end to his reign as champion and he was understandably dejected after the loss to Muhammad on his home soil.
“I’m not surprised,” Edwards said about the decision. “My body just felt tired. All week I’ve been feeling tired. Congrats to Belal. I’d like to get one more this year. Whenever, November, December. I’m ready to go.”
With Muhammad now cemented as champion, there’s a long list of contenders waiting in line to potentially get at him including undefeated wrecking machine Shavkat Rakhmonov, Ian Garry and Jack Della Maddalena all vying for that shot. For now, Muhammad can just relish the victory and enjoy flying home with a UFC title around his waist.
Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
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