Three years on from their first meeting, which ended early due to an accidental eye poke, Leon Edwards and Belal Muhammad will meet again in the main event of Saturday’s UFC 304 in Manchester, England.
Much has changed, primarily for Edwards, in the ensuing years. After the Muhammad fight, “Rocky” fought Nate Diaz in a memorable affair, surviving a late surge then finding himself in a title shot against the seemingly unstoppable Kamaru Usman.
Turns out, Usman was stoppable, primarily via head kick in the fifth round. That come-from-behind victory earned Edwards his first UFC title, while also making him the second Brit to claim gold in the promotion, following Michael Bisping. A pair of title defenses followed, in a rematch with Usman, then a grudge match with Colby Covington that fizzled somewhat when Covington was injured in the fight.
For Muhammad, well like Edwards he’s done nothing but win since that first fight. With five wins to Edwards’ four, he’s had to go the extra mile to earn a rematch, and title shot. Names like “Wonderboy,” Sean Brady, and Gilbert Burns have fallen to Muhammad in recent times, with a finish of Brady and win over ex-title challenger Burns finally deemed adequate for Muhammad to fight for gold.
While fans might have preferred Shavkat Rakhmonov or some other name, there’s little doubt Muhammad has earned his shot. As for the UFC 304 co-main event, that particular rematch, Tom Aspinall vs. Curtis Blaydes, arrived a lot quicker. After injuring his knee in his first fight with Blaydes, Aspinall returned to defeat Marcin Tybura then win interim gold against Sergei Pavlovich last November, upping the stakes considerably. The winner of Blaydes will either be next in line for the Jon Jones-Stipe Miocic winner, or see themselves promoted to undisputed champ should either Jones or Miocic (or both) call it a career.
Ahead of Saturday’s UFC 304, the key players assembled in Manchester on Thursday, July 25, 2024 for the traditional pre-fight press conference. That streams live in the embed above.
