What happened to Belal Muhammad's eye?
Belal Muhammad’s first main event in the UFC ended in bizarre fashion. The ranked welterweight suffered an eye injury after being poked by Leon Edwards in the second round of their headlining clash at UFC Vegas 21.
Muhammad's eye began to bleed following the accidental eye poke. It was clear 'Remember The Name' could not continue the fight after he admitted that he couldn’t see. Referee Herb Dean called the bout off, resulting in a no-contest. Following the incident, Muhammad was taken to hospital for stitches.
After the disappointing result, Belal Muhammad took to Twitter to provide an update on his vision.
"My heart is shattered my first main event ended like that but Gods the best of planners im sorry to the fans and the @ufc you deserved a full fight.. Alhamdillah the vision is coming back and no permanent damage to the eye I’ll be back and want to run it back @Leon_edwardsmma."
My heart is shattered my first main event ended like that but Gods the best of planners im sorry to the fans and the @ufc you deserved a full fight.. Alhamdillah the vision is coming back and no permanent damage to the eye I’ll be back and want to run it back @Leon_edwardsmma https://t.co/5xsvhmZ5Uh
In an interaction with ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, Belal Muhammad reflected on his fight against Leon Edwards. He revealed what went through his mind after suffering the gruesome injury at the hands of 'Rocky'.
"I don't even train with anybody who literally puts the fingers at your face. It's so dangerous. I don't care about a broken hand or a broken foot or something like that. But losing vision is the scariest of all those things, like it happened for me. Just because I have experienced something like that where an eye pokes has gone bad and I am like, you think about those things in that moment and I literally thought I was blind. So I am sitting there. My eye, I was moving it around and I couldn't see nothing and I am like, 'Dude, am I blind? Please don't tell me that I'm blind right now.'"
You can watch Belal Muhammad's full interview with ESPN MMA below:
Belal Muhammad hopes to break into contention at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Daukaus
While a rematch with Leon Edwards hasn't come to fruition, Belal Muhammad will have a similarly huge opportunity later tonight. He's set to take on No.5-ranked welterweight Stephen Thompson in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Daukaus at the UFC Apex.
Ranked No.10, Belal Muhammad has five wins and a no-contest in his last six UFC appearances. He's coming off a decision win over UFC veteran Demian Maia at UFC 263.
The fight with Thompson is the perfect opportunity for 'Remember The Name' to prove that he belongs in the upper echelon of the 170-pound division. A convincing win over 'Wonderboy' could catapult him towards the top.