UFC 304 will be headlined by a pair of title fights where both champions are British. There was a time where the United Kingdom looked like they would never have a UFC champion, however, after Michael Bisping became the first, Leon Edwards came next and now Tom Aspinall follows on (albeit with an interim belt).
Manchester’s brand new CO-OP Live Arena will host UFC 304 for the first PPV in England on US time since Bisping defended his belt at UFC 204. With Edwards headlining and Aspinall looking for revenge, British fans will hope for ‘and STILL’ twice on Saturday night.
Edwards vs. Muhammad 2
After the two men met at the Apex during the COVID pandemic in March 2021, the rematch has been a matter of time. After a dominant first round, the now champion, Edwards accidentally eye poked Belal Muhammad so badly that the American was unable to continue.
Why the immediate rematch was never booked is a mystery, however, Edwards has certainly gone on a different path to that of Muhammad. Rocky clashed with mega-star Nate Diaz in a five rounder, winning via decision. Then he went on to clash with Kamaru Usman for the belt in Salt Lake City. Scoring the headkick heard around the world, Edwards pulled off one of the biggest and best come from behind victories in UFC and sporting history. He went on to outpoint Usman in the rematch before dominating Colby Covington over five rounds in his second defence, leading to the Muhammad rematch.
Since the no contest against Edwards, Muhammad has scored five big wins, including a finish of Sean Brady and a five round victory over Gilbert Burns. He’s become more competent on the feet and still has his mauling wrestling game.
In their first meeting, Edwards was getting the better of Muhammad on the feet and it was looking as though it would be a long night for him, however, the eye poke robbed us of ever finding out how that one may have gone. Those questions will be answered on Saturday night, however.
Aspinall vs. Blaydes 2
Similar to the main event, Tom Aspinall and Curtis Blaydes have traded leather previously. With that being said, they only clashed for 15 seconds. In the main event of UFC Fight Night 208, Aspinall looked to land a leg kick on Blaydes and blew his knee out. What we learned from the fight was almost nothing.
What we have learnt since then, however, is fairly significant. Aspinall has gone 2-0 with two massive knockouts in dominant, blistering fashion. Firstly he ran through Marcin Tybura before knocking out Sergei Pavlovich in the first round for the interim heavyweight title. On both occasions, he’s shown lightening quick, heavy hands as well as improved movement.
Blaydes has gone 1-1 since that Aspinall fight. He was knocked out by Pavlovich following his victory in London and was being dominated by Jailton Almeida until he scored a come from behind knockout over the Brazilian.
We’ve learnt that Blaydes is more than happy to hang out on his back when taken down, something that Aspinall can certainly exploit. With that being said, we’ve also seen the Brit fight with his hands down extremely low and look to utilise head movement rather than blocking shots, something that Blaydes could take advantage of. Whatever happens, expect fireworks and don’t expect 25 minutes of action in the co-main event.
