Daniel Cormier recently remarked that Leon Edwards and Belal Muhammad's assertions of downplaying each other's abilities ahead of their rematch at UFC 304 are far more than mere wordplay.
Edwards is set to put his title on the line against Muhammad in the main event of the upcoming UFC pay-per-view this Saturday in front of his hometown crowd at the Co-op Live arena in Manchester, England.
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The two fighters first collided in a short-notice bout during the main event of UFC Fight Night in March 2021. Regrettably, an accidental eye poke in the second round compelled "Remember the Name" to bow out, resulting in the bout being ruled a no-contest.
Since their rematch was announced this past May, both rivals have been relentlessly downplaying each other's abilities through trash talk in interviews and social media posts. Muhammad, in particular, has gone so far as to label Edwards as the "easiest" opponent he could face in the division.
While the animosity between Edwards and Muhammad is palpable, the former UFC two-division champion believes their trash talk is merely a tactic to rile each other up and hype the fight...
During a recent appearance on the Anik & Florian Podcast, "DC" observed that both Edwards and Muhammad seem to be underestimating each other, each believing that their opponent hasn't improved since their first fight three years ago.
I think we're in a situation where both of these guys are looking at the other, going, 'Well, he ain't what he's supposed to be,'" Cormier said. "When I hear Leon Edwards talk about the competition, it feels like 'Rocky' expects the Belal that he kicked in the head in round one of the first fight, and then he was kind of beating, but it's not the same Belal Muhammad.
But I know Belal Muhammad needs to recognize that it's not the same Leon Edwards. We saw Leon Edwards change from fight one to fight two against Kamaru Usman.
The UFC Hall of Famer noted that both fighters are deliberately making provocative remarks to get under each other's skin and boost their own confidence ahead of their upcoming clash.
I truly believe that it is all gamesmanship. We're getting to the point where the gamesmanship starts to show, where you insult the guy to make yourself feel more confident going into the competition.
Following their initial bout, "Rocky" earned a title shot by defeating Nate Diaz at UFC 263 and ultimately dethroned Kamaru Usman to claim the welterweight gold at UFC 278 in August 2022.
Meanwhile, Muhammad had to embark on a five-fight winning streak to finally secure his first UFC title opportunity. Only time will reveal how much both fighters have evolved to counter each other's game plans.
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