A very important welterweight clash will unfold later tonight (Sat., April 16, 2022) at UFC Vegas 51 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, as Vicente Luque takes on Belal Muhammad in a main event rematch nearly six years in the making.
While Muhammad will have a chance to avenge his previous TKO loss to Luque this main event matchup in Vegas holds a little more importance than just redemption. Luque is currently ranked No. 5 in the division while “Remember the Name” is ranked No. 6. The winner should be able to wiggle his way into title contention as the year goes on. It’s a crucial opportunity for both fighters to say the least.
For Luque, he’ll have a slight advantage entering this rematch. Not only is “Silent Assassin” coming off four-straight finishes inside of the Octagon but he already holds a knockout win over Muhammad. MMA history doesn’t always repeat itself, but Luque is feeling confident entering the rematch.
That said, Luque isn’t in a rush to produce a first-round finish over Muhammad like he did back in 2016. “Silent Assassin” will still be looking to stop Muhammad in his tracks, but believes it could happen later in the fight.
“I don’t think so. I do believe I can finish him, maybe in the third or fourth [round],” Luque told ESPN MMA. “I don’t think it’s gonna be a quick one. You know, he’s a much better fighter. He has shown that he’s super tough. He can take shots and he has a lot of heart but I do think I can finish him.”
Muhammad, who is coming off back-to-back wins over Stephen Thompson and Demian Maia, has only been finished once in his entire MMA career and that came against Luque. “Remember the Name” has looked real good in every department of late and could give Luque real trouble if he can get his wrestling going early.
That said, Luque has proven to be one of the very best finishers in MMA today and has a really good chance of ending this one early (again).
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 51 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 5:30 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN/ESPN+ main card start time at 8:30 p.m. ET.
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