UFC 304 Is Official For Manchester With 2 Possible Championship Fights

The UFC officially announced their impending return to Manchester, England, on Wednesday April 24 with this post on social media.

The card isn’t finalized, but there is a good chance the event will feature two championship fights.

Dave Lovell, the head coach for UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards, says his fighter will be on the card and that he’s “99.9%” sure the opponent will be Belal Muhammad.

A rematch between Edwards and Muhammad makes sense for multiple reasons.

The rumored challenger has been chasing Edwards for a rematch for over a year, and it appears he will finally get his second shot at Rocky. The two men met in March 2021, and the fight ended as a no-contest after Edwards accidentally poked Muhammad in the eye.

Since then, Edwards has defeated Nate Diaz, dethroned Kamaru Usman with one of the most spectacular head-kick KOs in UFC history, defeated him in the rematch, and successfully defended his title again against Colby Covington in December 2016.

Muhammad has also been productive and successful since the no-contest. Three months later, he won by unanimous decision over Demian Maia.

Muhammad also defeated Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson in December 2021, Vicente Luque in April 2022 (avenging his only stoppage loss), Sean Brady in October 2022, and Gilbert Burns in May 2023.

While Muhammad is approaching a year of inactivity, he is still ranked No. 2 in the UFC’s official rankings at 170 pounds.

From a geographical standpoint, having Edwards headline a card in Manchester makes the most sense for him and the UFC. While the champion was born in Kingston, Jamaica, he fights out of Birmingham, England, so the fight with Muhammad will be a well-deserved home game for a guy who hasn’t lost a fight in almost nine years.

Tom Aspinall is Likely In, But He Needs An Opponent

UFC interim heavyweight champion and Salford, England native Tom Aspinall seems like a shoo-in for the card, most likely in the co-main event. The only real question is who will he be facing.

Aspinall has reportedly agreed to face Ciryl Gane, but the Frenchman has yet to agree to the fight. The UFC would likely prefer to make that fight.

However, if Gane doesn’t sign, the easy alternative for Aspinall is a rematch with Curtis Blaydes. Aspinall took the only loss of his UFC career against Blaydes when he suffered a severe knee injury just 15 seconds into their match.

Blaydes got the win because Aspinall couldn’t continue. That’s an easy sell for Aspinall and an appropriate fight for the interim champion, who is awaiting an opportunity to remove the transitional tag from his title distinction.

The card could be a massive event. There are rumors that popular fighters like Michael Venom Page, Paddy Pimblett, Ian Machado Garry, and Arnold Allen might also be on the card. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.