A new UFC Welterweight champion has been crowned as Belal Muhammad dethroned Leon Edwards in a stunning unanimous decision victory in the main event of UFC 304 at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, England on Saturday.

In the highly anticipated rematch, Muhammad, now the first ever Palestinian-American UFC champion, put on a wrestling clinic to neutralize Leon Edwards’ striking and secure a unanimous decision win.

The judges scored the bout 48-47, 48-47, and 49-46, all in favor of Muhammad.

Muhammad’s game plan was clear from the outset as he repeatedly took Edwards down and controlled him on the ground.

Despite Edwards’ attempts to escape and land strikes from the bottom, Muhammad’s grappling prowess and improved striking kept the champion at bay throughout the 25 minutes.

“It sounds like a lot of the people booing have a lot of tears in their eyes right now,” an emotional Muhammad said in his post-fight interview.

“I’ve worked my whole life for this moment, and I’m just getting started,” he added.

Edwards put his lackluster performance down to fatigue in the week leading up to the fight.

“No surprises. My body just felt tired from round one. Congrats to Belal. He got the job done and we’ll get it back again,” Edwards said after the fight.

The Kingston-born southpaw was attempting to successfully defend his title for the third time.

The UFC 304 main event between Jamaican-born British UFC Welterweight champion Leon Edwards and number two ranked Belal Muhammad is now official after both men successfully weighed in at the Welterweight title fight limit of 170 pounds on Friday morning.

Edwards weighed in at 170 pounds while Muhammad came in one pound under at 169 pounds ahead of their rematch at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England on Saturday.

Their first fight back in March 2021 ended in a no contest after Edwards accidentally poked Muhammad in the eye, leaving him temporarily unable to see clearly.

On Saturday, Edwards will be looking to defend his Welterweight crown for the third time since winning it at UFC 278 in August 2022 while Muhammad will be looking for his sixth win in a row and first hold on a UFC title.

Friday’s weigh-ins went about as well as one can go as no fighter on the main card or prelims missed weight.

The rest of the main card is as follows:

Interim champion Tom Aspinall (251 lbs) vs Curtis Blaydes (256 lbs) for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship

King Green (154.5 lbs) vs Paddy Pimblett (156 lbs) at lightweight

Christian Leroy Duncan (185 lbs) vs Gregory Rodrigues (185 lbs) at middleweight

Arnold Allen (145 lbs) vs Giga Chikadze (146 lbs) at featherweight

Jamaican-born British UFC Welterweight Champion Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards is predicting a knockout victory over opponent, number 2 ranked Belal Muhammad, in the main event at UFC 304 in Manchester this Saturday.

Edwards (22-3) enters Saturday’s fight coming off four wins in a row since a no contest against Muhammad in their first fight in March 2021 while Muhammad (23-3) has won five straight since that fight.

The 32-year-old southpaw was asked by MyProtein in a pre-fight interview how he plans to get the victory over Muhammad this weekend.

“Knock him out,” was his simple answer.

“I feel like, for this fight, I want to go out there and get a finish. We’ve fought before. I’ve felt his range and distance. I feel like I’m just the better overall mixed martial artist and I’ll prove that come Saturday night,” Edwards added.

If his prediction of a knockout comes true, it would be the fourth knockout for Edwards in 18 UFC fights.

His last win of that method was his famous head kick knockout win over former champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 278 in August 2022 to win the Welterweight title.

“I’m number one. I’m the best and that’s all it is. He’s another guy that’s in my way for me to get to where I want to get to and that’s it,” he said.

As far as his preparation goes, Edwards said a lot of hard work was put in to prepare for this upcoming fight.

“Camp’s been good. A lot of hard work. The team pushed me hard this camp and I’m feeling good for it,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to headlining my second homecoming show back in the UK,” he added.

Leon "Rocky" Edwards is leaving no stone unturned as he prepares for his upcoming UFC welterweight title defence against Belal Muhammad. The reigning champion has enlisted the help of a sleep specialist to adjust his body clock to the unusual start time of his fight, set for approximately 5am UK time.

The highly anticipated bout will headline UFC 304 at Manchester’s new Co-op Live Arena on July 27. Despite being held in England, the event’s schedule has been adjusted to cater to American audiences, with the first prelim starting at 11pm UK time and the main card kicking off at 3am. This late-night timeline is a significant departure from the typical 11pm main event start time that British MMA fans are accustomed to.

In an interview with talkSPORT Drive’s Andy Goldstein and Darren Bent, Edwards shared his initial reaction to the unconventional fight schedule. "At the start, I was bit like 'Oh, why is it that time?'" Edwards admitted. However, he quickly adapted by seeking professional help. "I've brought in a specialist in sleep and they've given me a plan of how it will work."

The sleep specialist's plan involves gradually shifting Edwards' daily routine to align with the fight's late start time. "I thought I'd have to train at 5am in the morning every day straight away but they said basically 'Six weeks out we'll start switching your body clock and training'," Edwards explained.

The process includes adjusting his training sessions incrementally. "So my evening session will now become my first session, so at 5pm I'll do my first session and then I'll train again at midnight. And then each week I'll move both sessions forward an hour to adjust to the time so I'll sleep later and train later," he elaborated.

This strategic approach aims to ensure that Edwards will be at peak performance when he steps into the octagon in the early hours of the morning.

The fight holds additional significance given the history between Edwards and Muhammad. Their last encounter in March 2021 at UFC Fight Night 187 in Las Vegas ended in a no-contest due to an accidental eye poke from Edwards that rendered Muhammad unable to continue. This rematch offers both fighters a chance to settle the score and for Edwards, an opportunity to solidify his reign as the welterweight champion.

As the fight approaches, all eyes will be on Edwards to see if his meticulous preparation, including his innovative approach to adjusting his sleep schedule, will give him the edge he needs to defend his title successfully against a formidable opponent in Belal Muhammad.

Jamaican-born British Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight Champion Leon Edwards now has a date and an opponent for his next title defense.

The 32-year-old will try to fend off number two-ranked Belal Muhammad in the main event at UFC 304 set for July 27 at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England.

Edwards will enter the fight in the midst of a 12-fight unbeaten streak while Muhammad is unbeaten in his last 10 contests.

The pair fought previously at UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs Muhammad on March 13, 2021 in Las Vegas. That bout ended in a no contest after an accidental eye-poke by Edwards in the second of five rounds rendered Muhammad unable to continue.

After than unfortunate fight, Edwards went on to defeat fan favorite Nate Diaz by unanimous decision in the main event at UFC 263 in Glendale, Arizona on June 12, 2021.

His next fight proved to be his crowning moment as he secured a spectacular head-kick knockout of Kamaru Usman to claim the UFC Welterweight title at UFC 278 in Salt Lake City on August 20, 2022.

Heading into that fight, Usman was on a 20-fight win streak and was the number one pound-for-pound fighter on the planet. The Nigerian also had a win over Edwards back in 2015.

Edwards then went on to defeat Usman again, this time via unanimous decision, in their trilogy fight at UFC 286 in London on March 18, 2023 before defending his belt for the second time with another unanimous decision win over Colby Covington at UFC 296 on December 16 last year.

Muhammad has also been on a tear since that eye-poke.The 35-year-old recorded unanimous decision victories over legends Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson at UFC 263 and UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Daukas, respectively, to close out 2021.

He then secured a third consecutive unanimous decision win, this time beating Vicente Luque in the main event of UFC Fight Night: Luque vs Muhammad 2 on April 16, 2022.

At UFC 280 on October 22, 2022 in Abu Dhabi, Muhammad won performance of the night for his knockout win over Sean Brady and in his last fight, he defeated former title challenger Gilbert Burns via unanimous decision at UFC 288 on May 6, 2023 in New Jersey.