UFC 304 could have been the last time Belal Muhammad stepped into the Octagon.
Fortunately for “Remember the Name,” his rematch with the now-former champion, Leon Edwards, went as perfectly as he drew it up en route to a unanimous decision win. It was a long road to the pinnacle of the Welterweight division for Muhammad. So much so that the 36-year-old admits a loss could have spelled the end of his 28-fight mixed martial arts (MMA) career (24-3, 1 no contest).
“It was to the point in my head where I was looking at it like, if I lost, there’s a chance that I’m just like, bro, I’m hanging ‘em up because I’m not gonna get another shot at it,” Muhammad said on The Fighter & The Kid.
“It was so hard to get there,” he continued. “I’m begging you guys to make a video for me to hype me up and get a shot there. I hate asking people for anything but I’m just like, bro, I need — I’m so desperate to do whatever it takes to get this shot that I’ll try anything.”
Muhammad has been on quite the run since his last loss, a unanimous decision against Geoff Neal in January 2019. The Edwards victory kept Muhammad unbeaten in his last 11 outings, winning 10 of those with the only asterisk in the form of the first Edwards fight via no contest in March 2021.
The new champion has expressed his plans to be an active defending champion during his reign, which is expected to start with a possible title bout against undefeated 18-0 contender, Shavkat Rakhmonov. Former champion, Kamaru Usman, has verbally gone back-and-forth with Muhammad recently, but he has yet to snap his three-fight losing skid since being dethroned by Edwards in August 2022 (watch highlights)