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Belal Muhammad thinks he can get the rematch against Leon Edwards if Nate Diaz defeats 'Rocky' at UFC 263 on June 12.
Muhammad's fight against Edwards ended up being a no-contest after an accidental eye poke rendered the former unable to continue. While Edwards closed the chapter on his end, Muhammad has since pitched for a rematch to have a fair fight. The matchup had come in effect after Edwards's original opponent, Khamzat Chimaev, pulled out of their fight due to lingering effects of COVID-19.
Belal Muhammad and Leon Edwards will make a comeback on UFC 263 against Demian Maia and Nate Diaz respectively. A win over an accomplished veteran in Maia and the residual goodwill of stepping up to save the main event will most likely earn Muhammad a clash against top-ranked fighters.
While speaking to journalists on UFC 263 media day, Belal Muhammad stated that the Leon Edwards rematch would make sense if Diaz wins at UFC 263 - and assuming, of course, that 'Bully' beats Maia.
"I'm going to be rooting for Nate Diaz, you know. Because obviously, if Nate Diaz wins then definitely the Leon Edwards fight makes sense. So, I'm gonna be Nate Diaz army. Hopefully, he wins that fight. Otherwise, you know, I'm going to look for somebody in the top five. I don't want to look past Maia but obviously, when you beat a guy like that, you deserve a No.1 contender fight or guys that are in that title picture," Belal Muhammad said.
Odds are stacked against Nate Diaz for his UFC 263 fight against Leon Edwards
Nate Diaz has been a mainstay of the UFC welterweight division for the majority of his fighting career.
The Stockton native has a 4-4 record in his eight UFC fights as a welterweight. While that itself is not an impressive record to warrant a win over a top contender like Leon Edwards, Diaz is 2-3 against natural welterweights who have fought ten or more times in the weight class.
Two of Nate Diaz's most recent welterweight victories have come against lightweight fighters Anthony Pettis and Conor McGregor. Meanwhile, Leon Edwards (18-3-1NC MMA, 10-2-1NC UFC) has not tasted defeat since losing to reigning welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in 2015 and is currently riding a nine-fight undefeated streak.
It is, therefore, no surprise that Nate Diaz is heavy a +400 betting underdog heading into the UFC 263 fight against Leon Edwards, who is a -600 favorite. However, if Diaz beats the odds and hands a defeat to Edwards on June 12, he will change the complexion of the welterweight title picture.
The UFC 263 pay-per-view will take place on June 12, 2021 in Gila River Arena, Glendale, Arizona. The event will be headlined by the middleweight title fight between champion Israel Adesanya (20-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) and the No. 3 ranked Marvin Vettori (17-4-1D MMA, 7-2-1D UFC). Leon Edwards vs Nate Diaz is the first five-round non-title fight in UFC history to feature on an undercard.
