UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards will take on Belal Muhammad at UFC 305 as he puts his belt on the line for a third time. For Muhmmad it is his first shot at the title and therefore, he is leaving no stone unturned in order to get that win. The champion however, is unfazed by the extra help Muhammad is getting in for this camp.
Muhammad shares the same management as the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev among others. Therefore, he has in the past trained with the Eagle’s MMA team multiple times. He was actually training with the Dagestani camp when he heard about finally having been granted a title shot.
According to reports, ‘The Eagle’ will now be joining his training camp to fine tune a few things as he prepares for the biggest fight of his life.
So, in a recent interview with ‘Red Corner MMA’ Edwards was asked what he made Nurmagomedov joining Muhammad to train him. The welterweight champion simply said that it doesn’t matter who he trained with. Training with Floyd Mayweather doesn’t make one Floyd Mayweather!
“If that is what he is banking on having the man in his corner, that makes no difference to me you know. When it comes fight night, his skills are his skills and the way he fights for last how many years is how he fights. Let’s see, I don’t give two shits who is in his corner or who is training with.”
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Both fighters have a bitter history and this rematch will hopefully settle that dispute. But how do they look stacked up against each other?
May the odds be forever in their favor
The fight between Edwards and Muhammad is three years in the making. The two men first faced off against each other in March 2021. Unfortunately, an accidental eye poke caused the fight to be called off.
Since then both Edwards and Muhammad have taken huge leaps forward in their respective games. Edwards has gone on to defeat the greatest welterweight of all time in Kamaru Usman and then defended it successfully against him. He’s then fought and utterly humiliated Coby Covington at his own game.
So, this isn’t new territory for the Briton. And neither is Manchester. With the lights on, the theatre of dreams in the vicinity and a crowd baying for blood, Belal will be ripe for the sacrifice unless he has truly stepped up since their first encounter.
However, Muhammad is the one who has made some substantial improvements to his game. ‘Remember the Name’ is undoubtedly the better grappler of the two. His recent fights and finishes however, prove that he has taken a massive step forward in the striking department as well.
It will be interesting to see how the rematch plays out given all the nuances that have now been added.
