"Reason nobody watches them" - Fans react as British UFC star praises Leon Edwards and Tom Aspinall for keeping things "respectful" in MMA

Leon Edwards has maintained his respectful ways on his rise to the top of the welterweight division, while Tom Aspinall has done the same en route to becoming interim heavyweight champion. Arnold Allen, who is also British, recently praised the two fighters for the example that they have set. Speaking to Ariel Helwani of The MMA Hour, the No.3-ranked featherweight stated:

"There's something similar with those guys. There's no BS with them. They are who they are. They go out and perform. There's not a gimmick. They're not trying to sell something and be something they're not. They're just themselves, which is good people, good role models.

Allen added:

"Leon, when I first went to Renegade to train, he was helping me out huge and he won the title and he came back and he was teaching the class. The same guy, he didn't change at all... It's nice to be surrounded by those humble characters and respectful martial artists rather than, you know the opposite."

Check out Arnold Allen's comments on Leon Edwards and Tom Aspinall below:

Fans shared a mixed reaction to Allen's comments. @mido_haekal claimed that the mannerisms of Edwards and Aspinall have hurt their starpower:

"the reason nobody watches them. lol"

@JCDibiase praised Allen for doing his job:

"Thank god we have fighters who just do their job instead of corny clown shit. Thank you Allen"

@professuhlemon blamed mixed martial arts fans while comparing it to other popular sports:

"The problem is fans hang onto the gimmicks and the bullshit too much. People don't watch football or basketball for how much shit the quarterbacks or star players talk to each other. They watch for the sport & to support their teams/athletes."

Check out the best fan reactions below:

Fan reactions

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Belal Muhammad predicts that he will dominate Leon Edwards

Belal Muhammad appears to be in line to get the next welterweight title opportunity. Speaking with Damon Martin of MMA Fighting, the No.2-ranked welterweight predicted that he will dominate Leon Edwards, stating:

"I think I’m going to go in there, I’m going to dominate him, I’m going to finish him. I think I’m the most dominant welterweight in the division and I think that once I get my shot everybody, the UFC, Dana White, all of them are going to know that they had the most dominant welterweight to ever do it standing underneath them this whole time... It's going to be the worst night of his life."

Check out Belal Muhammad's comments on facing Leon Edwards below:

While nothing has been made official, it has been reported that Muhammad is in line to receive the next title shot. Furthermore, Edwards had previously claimed that his next title defense will come at UFC 300.