UFC 304: Belal Muhammad 'hates' Leon Edwards because he is 'jealous,' says Michael Bisping ahead of Manchester clash

Michael Bisping and Nick Peet have weighed in on the upcoming mega-fights at UFC 304, arguing Belal Muhammad appears "rattled" and "jealous" ahead of his clash with Leon Edwards. Their welterweight contest will co-headline the event at Manchester's Co-op Live on 27 July alongside the heavyweight bout between title-holder Tom Aspinall and Curtis Blaydes.

'Respect... no, we want to see madness!' - Bisping reacts to UFC 304 press conference

Video credit: TNT Sports

Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping believes Belal Muhammad is “jealous” of Leon Edwards and that the Brit has the upper hand ahead of their UFC 304 welterweight bout.

The two last faced off in March 2021, in a match-up which was declared a no contest after an eye poke meant Muhammad couldn’t continue.

Speaking after the UFC 304 press conference, TNT Sports pundits Bisping and Nick Peet weighed in on the bout, with the latter arguing Muhammad appeared “rattled”.

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“The word he [Muhammad] is using is 'hate,'” Bisping said ahead of Saturday night's event, live on TNT Sports 1 and discovery+.

“He hates him because he’s jealous, in my opinion. He said 'it’s because he’s dismissed me, he says I’m not worthwhile, he’s just going to walk right through me.'

“Leon’s supposed to say [that], you’re supposed to be confident as a fighter, but to say you hate him is a bit much.

“Leon is looking at him as another opponent, and when he’s in the Octagon that’s going to help him, because you don’t want to be emotional. Belal is getting a bit too worked up.”

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Video credit: TNT Sports

Peet agreed that Muhammad appeared to be showing cracks already. “Leon’s heard a lot worse trash talk, [with] the Colby Covington rift,” he said.

“That doesn’t get under the skin, so there’s no way that’s going to get under the skin. It was like he [Muhammad] was running out of banter because Leon wasn’t biting. I thought he looked a little bit rattled.

He added: “The motivation, this crowd, being the defending champion, all that adds extra layers to what Leon’s trying to achieve. He’s trying to achieve greatness and go down as one of the greatest welterweights of all time.”

Bisping also drew comparisons between the two fighters and suggested that Muhammad’s similarities to Edwards’ recent opponents would benefit the Brit.

“I don’t think [there’s a] danger of complacency [for Edwards],” he said. “He’s in a really good position, he’s at the top of the sport, and he’s earned this the hard way, the long way, which is what Belal’s done.

“There are some parallels between their careers. Leon went on a very long streak, as Belal has done. But for Leon this is just rinse and repeat, the last three opponents, they’re all the same training camp, same approach. So that’s really good for Leon.”

Alongside the welterweight clash, UFC 304 will be co-headlined by interim heavyweight titleholder Tom Aspinall fighting Curtis Blaydes.

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The two also have history, with Blaydes winning their London Fight Night meeting in 2022 by default, when Aspinall injured his knee after 15 seconds and was forced out for a year.

Peet said: “Last time it was a freak injury, but it’s still an L on Tom’s record and he wants that back. It doesn’t matter how it turned out.

“Once that cage door closes, all those niceties disappear. Tom will be trying to take his head off.

“It’s not just words from Aspinall: in his soul, he believes he’s the best heavyweight walking planet earth.”

Bisping added: “You can’t read anything into [their previous fight]. Blaydes is a gent, he’s a class act, but he’s a threat.

“Stylistically, he might be the greatest match-up for Aspinall right now other than the champion, Jon Jones. He’s got heavy hands, he’s big, he’s got a great wrestling background.”

At the press conference, Dana White confirmed that the winner of Aspinall v Blaydes will next fight the winner of heavyweight champion Jon Jones v former champion Stipe Miocic.

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