With UFC 304 less than a week away, Belal Muhammad has received a massive boost in confidence, with his striking coach comparing him to the legendary Canelo Alvarez.
While not renowned for his boxing, the American has been working tirelessly on his hands in the gym, and it appears to be paying off.
Belal Muhammad supposedly has hands like Canelo Alvarez
On Saturday evening, Belal Muhammad will clash with Leon Edwards for the UFC welterweight title inside the 23,500-seater Co-op Live in Manchester, UK.
The bout serves as an eagerly-anticipated rematch, in which both men will attempt to right the wrongs from the first outing.
In their last encounter back in 2021, over the course of two rounds, the Brit dismantled his opponent with an array of impressive punches and kicks. But then, disaster struck.
Edwards landed an accidental eye poke that left his opponent in no fit state to continue, leaving both men with a bitter taste in their mouths.
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While ‘Rocky’ is convinced he was en route to a knockout win, Muhammad is adamant that he would’ve come through the storm and overwhelmed his opponent before claiming a stoppage of his own.
Now, the pair have the chance to settle their differences once and for all, and it’s fair to say they’ve both evolved in the last three years.
While Edwards has won the belt, the Chicago native has drastically improved his game, picking up victories over Stephen Thompson and Gilbert Burns.
However, he still receives criticism for his style, having bagged just five knockout victories in his career. But in a testament to his mindset, he’s worked hard on his hands, and according to his striking coach, Horacio Gutierrez, he’s now in the same league as Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez.
During UFC 304 Embedded, he said: “His hands are really good right now; they’re sharp, they’re fast. We’ve got him doing the Mexican boxing style. If you guys watch Canelo, Marcos [Maidana], all those guys, Belal has hands like that right now. Leon better be ready for that.”
Having conquered four weight classes in the boxing realm, Canelo is undeniably one of the best combat sports athletes on the planet.
Therefore, being put in the same realm as him is an enormous compliment. However, whether the comparison is accurate or not remains to be seen. Fans will likely get an idea of how far he’s come in the striking department when the cage door closes on Saturday evening.
Belal Muhammad fires shots at Leon Edwards
With the fight drawing ever closer, the challenger is ramping up the trash talk, making huge claims about his rival.
He is utterly convinced that his nemesis is scared of him. In addition, Muhammad claims that once he takes the belt, no one will care about Edwards anymore.
He told MMA Fighting: “Leon, like I said, it’s a fear thing. He knows these next matchups are going to be tough.
“He knows that he’s going to lose. He knows once this fight was signed, it was like, ‘Alright, well, this is my last couple of chances walking around with this belt. This is my last couple of chances to be on a GQ magazine or going to a soccer game,’ or something stupid like that.
“After he loses, nobody’s going to give him any attention. He doesn’t get any attention otherwise.”
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