Leon Edwards' coach has looked to add some context to the former UFC welterweight champion's wrestling struggles against Belal Muhammad.
Edwards headlined this past weekend's UFC 304 pay-per-view event at the Co-op Live arena in Manchester, England, defending the 170-pound gold in a rematch with Muhammad.
Against the odds and despite many backing the champ to retain, "Remember the Name" proved that his confidence was well placed by putting on a largely dominant display across five rounds en route to a unanimous decision victory.
A key part of Muhammad's title triumph was his renowned grappling game, as he utilized a smothering wrestling arsenal to control Edwards for significant portions of the UFC 304 headliner. That came as a surprise to many given Edwards' strong wrestling defense, which helped him outpoint both Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington last year.
Now, some extra information has been attached to the former champ's failure to combat Muhammad's takedowns...
Coach Lovell Was 'Dubious' About Edwards Fighting Through Injury At UFC 304
During a recent interview on Submission Radio, coach Dave Lovell reflected on his man's setback in Manchester this past weekend, which marked his first defeat since a decision loss to Usman in 2015.
While he acknowledged Muhammad's display and suggested it simply wasn't Edwards night, the experienced trainer did reveal some injury troubles that he believes hampered "Rocky's" ability to handle the challenger's main offense at UFC 304.
Where Leon was concerned, a lot of people don't know this — and I'm not making any kind of excuses for him — but we had a few niggles in camp. His back was niggling him," Lovell said. "So he couldn't wrestle the way he really needed to, offensively and defensively. We're not taking anything away from Belal's performance. He did well; the best man won on the night. But Leon will be back.
I was very dubious because these niggles were going on for about maybe five or so weeks on or off. He had to go to a chiropractor (for) regular massages. But again, after one session, it was back to square one," Lovell continued. "In the back part of my mind, I was thinking, 'Should we go for this?' But because he hadn't fought for so long, Leon said he wanted it, so we just pushed forward through the injury, trained through the injury, and then tried to get through and get a victory. Unfortunately, it never happened.
Edwards made no mention of the physical problems he seemingly entered the cage with at UFC 304 himself. In a short and succinct post-fight statement, "Rocky" apologized to his fans and vowed to regain the gold.