Matt Brown on Leon Edwards vs. Belal Muhammad: The Struggle is Real, but Are We Making Excuses?

Matt Brown gets where Leon Edwards is coming from after losing his UFC welterweight title to Belal Muhammad back in July. Edwards and his coach, Dave Lovell, haven’t been shy about pointing fingers at the bizarre circumstances of that fight—namely, a 5 a.m. local start time that left Edwards feeling “slow” and, per Lovell, only showing “30 to 40 percent” of his usual self. Brown, a retired UFC vet with years of Octagon scars, totally relates to how off-days can tank a performance. He’s been there. But here’s the rub: saying it out loud? That’s where it turns into an excuse, and Brown’s not a fan.

“I understand where Leon’s coming from, especially being in his home country,” Brown said on the latest The Fighter vs. The Writer episode. “He’s certainly accustomed to a certain rhythm, a routine of sleeping and waking. Belal coming from another country, there’s some excitement and everything’s new. The time zone is new. You’re going to be adjusting to the time zone regardless.

“I guess I could see it a little bit, but we’re right on track with the same thing we always say. You can’t take away from Belal. He fought amazing in that fight. That’s part of being a fighter. You have to deal with shit like that. Things like that have thrown me off in the past, too, 100 percent during fights. I know it. I don’t necessarily say it publicly. But it is factual. It does happen but that’s being a fighter.”

There’s this unspoken rule in the fight game: sometimes your worst night demands your best effort. Brown’s 15-year UFC run gave him plenty of moments where outside chaos—like jet lag or bad timing—messed with his headspace and cost him wins. The TUF 7 alum knows skill isn’t always the deciding factor; it’s about grit through the mess. But even if Edwards’ 5 a.m. nightmare is a legit reason for his off night against Muhammad, Brown says vocalizing it just doesn’t fly.

“There’s always a reason why you lose, whatever that reason is,” Brown explained. “There’s a reason. When you speak it out loud, it’s an excuse. No matter what it was. There’s just no way around that. It becomes an excuse.

“You just don’t speak it out loud, in my opinion. Believe me, I’m not trying to make it about myself, but speaking on my own experience, every loss I’ve ever had I could give you legitimate reasons why it happened. There’s very few where you walk away, and the guy was simply better than me. There’s reason that goes into every time. You know that you could have done it. When you say it out loud, it’s an excuse.”

For Edwards, that brutal early-morning slot might’ve been the tipping point. Muhammad mauled him with takedowns and control, picking apart the champ with a near-perfect game plan. It snapped Edwards’ title reign and his shot at a third straight defense—a loss that clearly still burns. Brown gets why Edwards and Lovell are searching for answers, but he’s blunt: airing it out makes it look like they’re dodging Muhammad’s brilliance.

“Leon being the champion and losing, of course he’s going to discount what Belal did,” Brown said. “He’s looking for answers for why did he lose, and obviously that’s what he’s chalking it up to, at least publicly. Maybe in private there’s other things. But I think it’s a legitimate answer for him. Maybe Belal had to deal with the same thing. Had Belal lost maybe he would have used the same excuse, used the same reasoning.

“The fact is again, you can word it however you want, when you bring it up, it’s an excuse. There is legitimately reasons a lot of times why you lost that are not simply because the guy was better. But you just don’t say anything about it.”

This Saturday, Edwards gets a chance to flip the script against Sean Brady at a much saner hour. A win could sling him right back into the title mix; a loss might shove him down a longer road to redemption. Brown sees it as a pivotal moment for both guys. “It’s not do or die, but it’s huge implications in this fight,” Brown said. “Leon has a long road ahead if he ends up losing this fight. The same for Brady. If he loses this fight, he’s probably going to be look at as a great fighter that never got to the title, one of those guys — kind of like myself — one of those guys. He’ll kind of be in that category. He won’t be expected to make it to the title. Just the opposite if they win.

“If either one wins, they’re definitely knocking on the door, and we know how this game is. You could end up getting a title fight at any time, but also, you’d think they be in at least a title contender match after a win here.”

For Edwards, this is about proving the Muhammad fight was an anomaly—not explaining it away. Brown’s take? Keep the reasons in your head, let your fists do the talking, and leave the excuses at the door.