Edwards loses Welterweight title to Belal

Leon Edwards faced a challenging night at UFC 304, losing his welterweight title to Belal Muhammad in Manchester over the weekend. The fight ended in a unanimous decision, marking the end of Edwards’ almost two-year reign, which began with his stunning knockout of Kamaru Usman in 2022.

This was the second time the two were meeting, after their first fight back in 2021 ended in a ‘No Contest’ due to an eye poke from Edwards. 

Edwards struggled with fatigue throughout the bout, attributing his lackluster performance to the fight’s early start time of 5:30 AM. He stated in the post-fight press conference, “My body just felt tired from Round 1. All week, I’ve been feeling just tired from the timing.” But he also had some praises for the new champion, admitting he was not surprised by Belal’s performance and that “he got the job done” while promising he would be back 

Despite his efforts, he failed to threaten Muhammad with his striking and grappling, which saw him dominated by Belal for a good part of the match while suffering multiple takedowns. 

In the closing moments of the fight, Edwards attempted a comeback, landing elbows that opened a cut on Muhammad’s forehead, but it was too little, too late to turn the tide. 

Edwards then took to social media to apologize to his fans for his performance and the title loss, but promised them he would reclaim the title: “I have been through harder times than this in life, and I will rise again. Thanks for all the love and support I will get this back in blood”. 

On when he could fight next, Edwards is quite optimistic he could fight in November or December, probably a Belal-rematch. However, UFC President Dana White indicated that an immediate rematch with Muhammad is unlikely, advising Leon to rest for now. White also credited Belal’s performance to training with Khabib Numargomedov, adding “his performance was what you would expect.”

For Belal, he said he would give Edwards a rematch in three years, as he does not feel Edwards reigned a long time as champion to deserve an immediate rematch: “Yeah, I’ll give him a rematch in three years. Let him work his way back up. I think it was a dominant fight. There’s really no need for a rematch, and I don’t think he had that long reign as a champion where he was entitled to a rematch.”