It’ll be harder to forget the name now.
Belal
Muhammad did what many thought couldn’t be done and dethroned
Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight king Leon
Edwards by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) in the
UFC 304 main event Saturday night at the Co-op live in
Manchester, England.
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Muhammad backed Edwards up with the jab and routinely took him down
with a high-crotch single leg. Edwards looked lethargic but had
Muhammad in danger in Round 3 and in the final minute of the fight
when he cut the challenger with a nasty elbow. Outside of those
moments, the former champion was dominated by the disciplined
Chicagoan, who capped off his 10-fight win streak with UFC
gold.
Aspinall Avenges Fluke Loss
Tom
Aspinall has his eyes on Jon Jones and
he refused to let Curtis
Blaydes get in the way. The interim heavyweight champion avenged his knee injury loss to
Blaydes two years ago with a devasting first-round knockout (1:00)
to retain his belt in the co-main event.
“Hello Jon, I have nothing against you personally but I know that I
can beat you,” Aspinall said in his post-fight interview.
‘Paddy the Baddy’ Makes Statement
Paddy
Pimblett picked up the most impressive win of his career,
submitting Bobby Green
via triangle choke armbar in the first round (3:22) of their
lightweight feud.
Much anticipation circled the fight as Green desired to end the
Pimblett hype train. A spot in the rankings was on the line for
Pimblett, and he impressed in front of his cheering countrymen.
Pimblett bothered Green early with calf kicks before ultimately
catching his prey in a trap on the ground. As Green squirmed, he
only made the choke tighter. Green was asleep by the time Pimblett
transitioned his triangle into an armbar that grotesquely
hyperextended the elbow joint.
‘Robocop’ Dominant Yet Again
Gregory
“Robocop” Rodrigues (16-5) had Christian
Leroy Duncan’s momentum in a paddywagon after the former
Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion put on a dominant, well-rounded
performance en route to a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27,
30-27).
Despite Rodrigues’s grappling pedigree, the 32-year-old once again
showed that his striking can carry a fight. He caught Duncan with
clean elbows and punches while staying composed after suffering a
nasty cut.
Allen Guts Out Tough Win
Arnold
Allen was on the cusp of a featherweight title shot before
dropping back-to-back decisions against Max
Holloway and Movsar
Evloev, but the Englishmen is back in the picture after edging
out a tough win over the dangerous Giga
Chikadze (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Allen went against the wishes of his corner and decided to trade
with the former kickboxing champion instead of wrestling. The
decision nearly cost Allen after he ate a hard knee in the first
round. Allen didn’t lose faith, however, and proved that he could
hang with the talented striker. He found success countering
Chikadze’s kicks and took control of the center of the Octagon.
Chikadze (15-4) landed solid shots from the backfoot, but his
constant movement hindered him from landing anything that could
keep Allen off him. After a back-and-forth fight, Allen’s (20-3)
activity and forward movement edged out his first win since Oct.
2022.
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UFC 304 Prelims: Mokaev Remains Undefeated in Bizarre Scrap