Talk of who Leon Edwards will defend his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight title against next has dominated headlines after “Rocky” defeated Colby Covington at UFC 296 last Saturday night (Dec. 16, 2023) in Las Vegas, Nevada (see it again here).
Shavkat Rakhmonov made his case after submitting Stephen Thompson on the same card (highlights), while Edwards’ coach recently threw a dark horse into the mix in the form of Gilbert Burns. And let’s not forget about Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, who is calling for a champion vs. champion showdown.
But the logical step is to give the bout to Belal Muhammad, who has firmly cemented himself as the No. 1 contender based on his ranking and 10-fight unbeaten streak. That is why “Remember the Name” is growing frustrated by Edwards seemingly shying away from a rematch. That frustration increases knowing that Edwards has no sympathy after he went through the same waiting game and rejection en route to getting his first crack at former champion, Kamaru Usman.
“Honestly, that’s what pisses me off the most about him,” Muhammad told MMA Fighting. “That’s what’s making me dislike him the most. Not even the fact that we fought, and he’s the one who committed the foul. He’s the one who eye-poked me. I’m the one who took the fight on three weeks’ notice, so he could have a fight. You’re the one who committed that act. I don’t really care about that anymore. Now, we’re looking at just stats,” he said.
“I’m on a 10-fight unbeaten streak. You were on a nine-fight unbeaten streak when you were waiting for your title shot and everybody brushing you off. You know how it feels to get brushed off like that.”
Upon catching win of Muhammad’s complaints, Edwards finally seemed to have agreed to the title fight, though he still continued his strong troll game.
“Lol, Belal calm down son you’re the least intimidating person in the organization,” he wrote on X. “I already told UFC I don’t mind I’ll fight you next that’s easy work. You just have to figure out why they hate you so much.”
With UFC 300 set for April 13, 2024 inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, it’s not out of the question to expect this fight to take place on the card, which Dana White promised to be the biggest in the history of the sport.