Biggest Winners, Loser From UFC 304 | UFC Betting Sites

UFC 304: Edwards v Muhammad 2 — Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

UFC 304 went down last night (Sat., July 27, 2024) inside Co-op Live in Manchester, England. In the main event of the evening, Belal Muhammad dominated Leon Edwards for the majority of the fight with his grappling to become the new Welterweight champion of the world (recap here). In the co-main event, Tom Aspinall defended his interim Heavyweight strap by knocking out Curtis Blaydes in just one minute (video highlights here).

Biggest Winner: Belal Muhammad

“Remember The Name” said he would make it look easy against Edwards, and he did just that. From the opening bell, Muhammad took the center of the cage and he didn’t back down for the next 25 minutes. Indeed, an ever-improved Muhammad used his wrestling to earn a total of nine takedowns. Once there, he was busy trying to secure submissions, though Edwards showed great jiu-jitsu defense. What made Muhammad’s performance even more impressive was that he didn’t struggle at all against one of the best fighters in the game. That’s not to say Edwards didn’t have a few moments, but it simply wasn’t enough. For Muhammad, he is now unbeaten in his last 11 bouts, and he tops off his run with a new shiny title. It was an unexpected win by most, but once again “Remember The Name” silences his doubters in the biggest fight of his career.

Runner Up: Tom Aspinall

Another Tom Aspinall fight, another first-round knockout finish. The heavy-handed Brit continued his wrecking tour by absolutely demolishing Blaydes in the very first round with an onslaught of strikes after knocking him down with a bomb. Aspinall, as usual, showed his quickness and agility by bouncing around and pouncing like a Middleweight to get the job done in the opening frame. For those keeping score at home, of his eight UFC wins he has seven first-round finishes, six by way of knockout. With the victory, Aspinall keeps his hopes of fighting Jon Jones down the road in a title unification match, assuming “Bones” gets through Stipe Miocic if they do indeed throw down later this year.

Honorable Mention: Paddy Pimblett

Much was made about Pimblett’s track record so far inside the Octagon, with his best win coming against a way past his prime Tony Ferguson. But going up against King Green, he was facing a a dangerous foe who was coming in 3-1 in his last four fights, which includes a one-sided beatdown over longtime veteran, Jim Miller, at UFC 300. Once the action got started, “The Baddy” didn’t disappoint, taking it to King from the jump, eventually capitalizing on a lazy takedown attempt to sink in a fight-ending triangle choke, which literally put his foe out for a nap. That is now eight straight wins for Pimblett, who remains undefeated inside the Octagon at 6-0. This win will undoubtedly get him into the Top 15, setting him up for bigger and better challenges moving forward.

Biggest Loser: Leon Edwards

“Rocky” came into the main event unbeaten in nearly a decade, and on a 13-fight unbeaten streak. But the now-former 170-pound champion looked like a shell of himself because he failed to put up much offense against the No. 2 ranked fighter at 170 pounds. He was taken down pretty much at will, and while he did have a handful of shining moments, he was simply out-classed for five rounds of action. During his post-fight speech he said he felt tired, and did so all week, but that’s a weak excuse if you ask me. Or was that odd fighting time a real thing? Whatever the case, Edwards didn’t show up and laid an egg, and it cost him his title.

For complete UFC 304 results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.