Leon Edwards admits he felt slugging in the days leading up to UFC 304 as he attempted to get acclimated for the unusual timing of his title defense against Belal Muhammad, and it translated into his performance. Edwards (24-3 MMA, 15-3 UFC) saw his reign as welterweight champion come to an end Saturday with a unanimous decision defeat to Muhammad (22-4 MMA, 14-3 UFC) at Co-op Live in Manchester, England. It was a tough outing for “Rocky,” who was taken down in the opening moments of the fight, spiked on his head in the second round and controlled for more than 12 minutes overall, according to UFC stats . There was no point over the five rounds where Edwards ever truly threatened a finish, and in his immediate in-cage interview with Daniel Cormier after Muhammad was announced the winner and new champion, he said it was hard to get his momentum going after the bout began at approximately 5:37 a.m. local time. “I’m not surprised (by Belal’s performance),” Edwards told Cormier
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