Belal Muhammad reveals taking "two to three thousand body kicks" while training for Leon Edwards fight at UFC 304
Belal Muhammad has been quite vocal about the grueling training he underwent to prepare for his UFC welterweight title showdown against Jamaica-born Englishman Leon Edwards. Muhammad has now detailed another facet of his camp, indicative of the lengths he went to dethrone Edwards.
Their first encounter headlined a UFC Fight Night event at the UFC Apex in March 2021. Muhammad was unable to continue after being struck by an eye poke from Edwards in round two, and their fight was declared a no contest.
Muhammad, a veteran American fighter of Palestinian descent, subsequently worked his way to a title shot. Meanwhile, Edwards defeated Kamaru Usman with an iconic head kick knockout to capture the UFC welterweight title in Aug. 2022. 'Rocky' notched two successful title defenses.
Edwards put his gold on the line in a rematch against Muhammad that headlined UFC 304 at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England, this past July. Muhammad, who's extensively trained with retired MMA great Khabib Nurmagomedov and his Dagestani team in recent years, showcased stellar grappling against Edwards.
The challenger displayed excellent striking as well, defeating Edwards via unanimous decision to become the new UFC welterweight champion.
On episode 162 of the JRE MMA Show, Belal Muhammad spoke to UFC commentator Joe Rogan and revisited the Leon Edwards rematch. 'Remember the Name' alluded to Edwards' fearsome striking, including his thunderous kicks, and explained how he prepared for it.
The 36-year-old stated:
"I mean, especially because Leon's so good at his lateral movement, and his kicks hurt so hard. So, for me, I was like, 'I can't be in kicking range at all.' I think I felt like, one, one body kick early. And I was like, 'Alright. Let me step forward on it.' So, even with my mindset the whole camp, I probably took two to three thousand body kicks and then moved forward at each other.
"And if I backed up at all, my coach is yelling at me, 'Look at what you did here. You did this wrong. Move forward. Move forward. We can't take one step back.' So, I was like, I was writing it down. I was putting it in my head, 'Do not take a step back. Do not take a step back.' And then, it just came out in the fight."
Check out Muhammad's comments below:
Watch the JRE episode below:
Belal Muhammad on potentially fighting Shavkat Rakhmonov, choosing 'Nomad' over Kamaru Usman
While Leon Edwards vowed to avenge his defeat, UFC CEO Dana White suggested that the Muhammad vs. Edwards trilogy fight won't be next.
In the meantime, ex-UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and top contender Shavkat Rakhmonov have been lobbying for a title shot. Belal Muhammad recently jibed that they should fight each other to determine the number one contender.
In a recent appearance on Submission Radio, Belal Muhammad claimed he'd fight Shakvat Rakhmonov next rather than Kamaru Usman. He alluded to Usman's current three-fight losing streak to explain that preference.
Muhammad implied that defeating the 37-year-old Usman at this point, with the former champ's well-known knee injury issues, wouldn't earn him the deserved credit. Instead, he emphasized that he'd like to beat the 18-0 Rakhmonov, who's finished every opponent in his career to date:
"He's undefeated, he has all the finishes, so that's the guy that I have my sights on."
Watch Belal Muhammad's assessment below (16:02):