Belal Muhammad looks back at how things looked when Leon Edwards last lost prior to UFC 304: "Was still having hoop dreams"
Belal Muhammad looked back at his career in light of a social media post that highlighted the changes in the UFC since Leon Edwards' last loss before UFC 304. Muhammad snapped Edwards' 13-fight unbeaten run to capture the UFC welterweight title at UFC 304 on July 27. Edwards' previous loss, against Kamaru Usman, came in December 2015.
A recent post on ESPN MMA's Instagram shared some interesting facts to put the length of Edwards' unbeaten run in perspective. For instance, Conor McGregor was the UFC featherweight champion at the time of Edwards' defeat. Meanwhile, Alexander Volkanovski, who recently lost the featherweight title, was fighting in the Australian regional circuit when Usman defeated Edwards.
Check out the post below:
Muhammad took to the comments section of the post and shared where he was in his life trajectory:
"Bully B was still having hoop dreams."
For the uninitiated, the term 'Hoop Dreams' refers to an ambition to chase the goal by fighting through any obstacles. The 1994 movie of the same name chronicles the journey of two African-American boys struggling to become basketball players.
Belal Muhammad is high up on the list of fighters with the longest active unbeaten streaks in the UFC
Belal Muhammad has come a long way since he was "having hoop dreams." The UFC 304 triumph over Leon Edwards extended his unbeaten streak to 11. Muhammad suffered his last defeat in January 2019 when Geoff Neal outpointed him en route to a unanimous decision victory.
Since then, the 36-year-old has amassed 10 victories while one fight, the first clash with Leon Edwards in March 2021, ended in a no-contest due to an accidental eye poke from the Brit.
According to UFC statistics, Muhammad is currently on the fourth-longest active unbeaten streak in the UFC behind Jon Jones (19), Islam Makhachev (14), and Magomed Ankalaev (12).
Heading into the UFC 304 title fight against Leon Edwards, Belal Muhammad was heavily criticized for his 'lackluster' fighting style, and many expected 'Rocky' to emerge victoriously against Muhammad's wrestling-heavy approach. However, the 36-year-old dominated the majority of the fight and walked away with the UFC welterweight title.