The MMA Daily

The Main Event comes in the Welterweight division, as Vicente “The Silent Assassin” Luque takes on Belal Muhammad. A winner of four straight and ten of the last eleven, Luque is closing in on a title shot. Having defeated the last four opponents via stoppage, Luque is proving to be one of the most dangerous Welterweights in the division. Meanwhile, not counting the no contest against Leon Edwards, Muhammad has won six straight and ten of his last eleven. Having most recently defeated Stephen Thompson, Muhammad has proven that he is a legitimate contender at Welterweight.

As for a prediction, I have Luque winning. Different fighters since there first meeting, I am not expecting another first-round stoppage victory by Luque. However, I do believe Luque will eventually get Muhammad out of there. The reason for that, is Luque is exceptionally well rounded. With an ability to finish a fight both on the feet and the mat, which is proven by his eleven knockout and eight submission victories, Luque is perhaps the most dangerous fighter in the Welterweight division. Not that Muhammad isn’t capable of winning this fight, but I can’t see him going toe-to-toe with Luque. I believe his route to winning exist with his wrestling abilities, which are exceptional. Landing seven takedowns in his most recent fight, with nearly twelve minutes of control time in a fifteen minute fight, Muhammad isn’t afraid to grind out a fight. While it’s plausible he can neutralize Luque on the gorund, I don’t think it’s feasible for over twenty-five minutes. The active guard of Luque combined with his submission abilities, is going to have Muhammad working hard to maintain top control. And even though Muhammad is one of the more conditioned fighters, I do think that training and cutting weight through Ramadan may effect his gas tank. So much that, it leaves him vulnerable to being tagged and finished. So with that said, I predict that Luque once again gets the best of Muhammad via TKO.