Gilbert Burns wasn’t shocked that Belal Muhammad defeated Leon Edwards to change into the welterweight champion.
Burns fought Muhammad again at UFC 288 in Might of 2023 in a No. 1 contender bout. The Brazilian ended up shedding by determination, and after the combat, Muhammad held out for over a yr to get the title shot towards Leon Edwards at UFC 304.
In the end, it was Belal Muhammad who pulled off the upset as he scored a clear-cut determination win over Leon Edwards to change into the brand new champion. Though some had been shocked Muhammad gained, Burns stated he wasn’t as he knew Muhammad was a nasty matchup.
“I sort of noticed that coming,” Gilbert Burns advised MMA Preventing.“Particularly (as a result of) Leon is a superb fighter, however each time he was saying, ‘I’m going to knock this man out’ — bro, it’s arduous to knock Belal out. The man has a chin. Leon Edwards within the final, I don’t know, 10 fights, he has possibly one knockout towards Kamaru (Usman). Apart from that, he doesn’t knock individuals out.
“On approach, striking-wise, Leon Edwards could be very, excellent. However, placing all the things along with the tempo, with the quantity, staying in your face with takedowns, soiled boxing. Particularly doing the camp with Islam (Makhachev) and Khabib (Nurmagomedov), I sort of felt that was the trail for Belal to win — and he did precisely what he needed to,” Burns added.
