UFC Welterweight Champion Belal Muhammad doesn’t know if recent opponent Leon Edwards has what it takes to earn a chance at redemption.
Muhammad unseated Edwards from the 170-pound throne in the summer, heading across the pond to enemy territory to challenge the Brit at UFC 304 inside the Co-op Live in Manchester, England.
Against the odds and predictions of many, “Remember the Name” put on a dominant display to upset Edwards and his home crowd, sweeping the scorecards to extend his unbeaten run to 11 and make good on his pre-fight confidence.
In the aftermath of the result, Edwards apologized to his fans and vowed to rise back to the top, even promising to “get this back in blood.”
Muhammad, however, seems to have his doubts…
Muhammad: Edwards Must Figure Out If He Still Has ‘The Hunger’ To Compete
During an interview with MMA Fighting, Muhammad looked back on his triumph over Edwards and assessed whether or not the Englishman can rebound en route to a trilogy fight.
“Remember the Name” has little doubt when it comes to his rival’s ability, which he sees as good enough to get him back into the championship conversation. But having long questioned “Rocky’s” mentality, Muhammad thinks that could pose a stumbling block.
“Skill wise, he has the skill to do it but it’s all about mentality,” Muhammad said. “Because you’ve seen it a lot with undefeated guys, when they get that one loss, a lot of guys don’t know how to take a loss. He hasn’t lost in eight years and he had this long streak. So it comes now from how does he come back from it mentally?
“Physically, yeah he has all the attributes, the skills to do it, and when you’re looking at the lineup now, I beat a lot of these guys in the top 10 already. So there’s not a lot of guys you’re looking at (like), ‘This guy is the clear No. 1 contender.’ So Leon could go out there and get one win and if it’s a huge win, there’s a possibility that he could get his name back in the mix,” Muhammad continued. “Now he has to figure out what he wants to do with his life. If he still wants to chase it with that hunger inside him.”
It remains to be seen what lies in the immediate future for both Muhammad and Edwards, but it would appear to be slightly clearer for the former.
Since his crowning this past July, the new champ has gone back and forth with both Shavkat Rakhmonov and Kamaru Usman regarding his first title defense, which Muhammad’s manager has pointed to as likely for UFC 310 in December.
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