“What makes him more privileged?” Leon Edwards denies Belal Muhammad a title shot despite nine-fight winning streak

The welterweight champion Leon Edwards defended his belt for the second time at UFC 296. He put on a clinical performance against the #3 ranked Colby Covington. On the other hand, #2 ranked Belal Muhammad weighed in as a back-up fighter for the event. Earlier, he stated that this would confirm his spot for the next title shot. However, the middleweight champion had something else in mind and denied the next title shot to Muhammad.

In the post-fight press conference, Leon Edwards addressed whether Belal Muhammad was next in line for the title. He said he wasn’t interested in fighting ‘Remember the Name’ as there were ‘other options.’ Further, he mentioned the nine-fight winning streak Muhammad was on and said he was also in a similar spot when he was denied a title shot for years. However, in the end, he said it didn’t matter who was next, he would rock through them and continue his legacy. Here is what he said:

Nah, there are definitely other options. I don't feel like Belal should be next. I have done it before. I've won like 10 fights in a row and didn't get the title shot. So, what makes him different or more privileged? Colby's already skipped the line already. So, let's see who's next. Like I said, this is Rocky's era, this is my era now, and I'll always keep reigning.

Leon Edwards (via UFC 296 Post-Fight Press Conference)

Leon Edwards was unbeaten for ten fights when the UFC awarded him a title shot against Kamaru Usman. Likewise, he denied Belal Muhammad a title shot on that basis. Earlier, the two welterweight squared up at a Fight Night event in 2021. Unfortunately, the fight was declared a no-contest after Muhammad suffered a gruesome eye poke and couldn’t continue to fight.

Leon Edwards won the welterweight title in fashion when he knocked out Kamaru Usman in UFC 272. His stock only rose as he defended his title in a rematch. Now, he got a win over Colby Covington and looked to continue defending his title to build his legacy.

However, he denied a title shot to Belal Muhammad who was the rightful contender. ‘Remember the Name’ was on a nine-fight win streak with notable wins against Gilbert Burns, Sean Brady, and Stephen Thompson.

Belal Muhammad critiques Leon Edwards and Colby Covington for their performance at UFC 296

Belal Muhammad was the rightful contender to challenge Leon Edwards at UFC 296. However, the UFC CEO refused him and gave Colby Covington a title shot. As such, Leon Edwards and ‘Chaos’ went into action this weekend at UFC 296. However, the performance from both the champion and challenger didn’t impress ‘Remember the Name’. Further, he criticized it as underwhelming.

The animosity between Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington shot through the roof after the latter’s comments at the UFC 296 pressers. As such, the fight was expected to be an action-packed fun fight. However, it was a low-output fight with little offense from the challenger.

As such, Belal Muhammad criticized both the welterweights for their performance. He went after ‘Chaos for his inactivity and ‘Rocky for not putting it on Covington after what happened at the presser.

Although Leon Edwards didn’t put on a show, he managed to get the win dominantly. By this, he retained his championship and looked forward to his next fight. As such, there were only two contenders who made sense, Belal Muhammad and Shavkat Rakhmonov. However, Muhammad made a strong case as he weighed in as a backup fighter for UFC 296. As such, he was keen on getting the title shot next no matter what.

In case you missed it:

• “Who wants to put a racist in a main event title fight?” Colby Covington wants Leon Edwards vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov as Belal Muhammad deemed not ‘PPV worthy’
• Colby Covington is ‘slow and old’, claims head honcho Dana White after UFC 296

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