Leon Edwards lost to Belal Muhammad at UFC 304. The welterweight championโs reign came to a close at his home ground in Manchester. However, coach Dave Lovell has an important detail that could have affected the outcome of the main event showdown.
Leon Edwardsโs coach Dave Lovell recently sat down for a conversation with Submission Radio. During their discussion, Lovell prefaced by saying that he did not wish to make excuses for Edwardsโs loss at UFC 304. He then went on to reveal the problem Leon Edwards had walked in with inside the octagon at UFC 304.
And his game plan come off. Where Leon was concerned. A lot of people donโt know this, and I am not making any kinds of excuses for him. But we had a few niggles in camp his back was niggling. So he couldnโt wrestle the way he really needed to.
Dave Lovell on Submission Radio
Apparently, โRockyโ was almost ready to step back from the fight because of the possible back injury during training camp. Social media was filled with comments talking about how mellow the entire event was. Even UFC CEO, Dana White was disappointed in the lack of performance on the fight card.
However, Leon Edwards showed up to the octagon and faced Belal Muhammad. The fight went the distance and โRemember The Nameโ ultimately came out on top as the new welterweight champion. It will be interesting to see if the Brit can claim back his title anytime soon.
Leon Edwardโs coach wants him to fight Ian Garry
During the interview with Submission Radio, Dave Lovell talked about Leon Edwardsโs potential opponents for his comeback after the loss at UFC 304. Lovell took a few names at welterweight namely Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Garry.
Edwards has to get himself back in contention to fight for the title. Being a three-time defending champion, Lovell estimates two wins with a few up-and-coming fighters or one contender in the top-five rankings would get โRockyโ back in title fight discussions.
I would like to see Leon fight Ian Garry. Obviously we can keep it British based, either Ireland or over here…. Heโs looking for a scalp,… he may think it is a good scalp for him to get to march on to get a championship belt or a title shot.
Dave Lovell on Submission Radio
Garry previously trained at Team Renegade. However, he was kicked out and as per Edwards, the Irishman was not a culture fit for the gym. Lovell anticipates a rematch between Muhammad and Edwards in about two years in 2026. It will be interesting to see how that trilogy fight turns out and if โRemember The Nameโ is even champion till then.
!