Leon Edwards reveals extra measure he’s taking to combat bizarre UFC 304 fight start time

Leon Edwards has brought a sleep specialist into his camp to help him adjust to the bizarre start time for his next fight.

‘Rocky’ is set to defend his UFC welterweight crown against Belal Muhammad in the main event of UFC 304 at Manchester’s new Co-op Live Arena on July 27.

Despite the event taking place in England, the start times have been pushed back to accommodate fans in the USA.

The first prelim is set to take place at 11pm UK time while the main card is scheduled to start at 3am, meaning the show won’t wrap up until 6am at the earliest.

Providing there are plenty of stoppages on the card, the earliest Edwards could plausibly fight is 5am – a far cry away from the normal 11pm start time that British MMA fans have come to expect from feature attractions on their shores.

“At the start, I was bit like ‘Oh, why is it that time?'” Edwards told talkSPORT Drive’s Andy Goldstein and Darren Bent on Tuesday afternoon.

“But I’ve brought in a specialist in sleep and they’ve given me a plan of how it will work.

“I thought I’d have to train at 5am in the morning every day straight away but they said basically ‘Six weeks out we’ll start switching your body clock and training’.

“So my evening session will now become my first session, so at 5pm I’ll do my first session and then I’ll train again at midnight.

“And then each week I’ll move both sessions forward an hour to adjust to the time so I’ll sleep later and train later.”

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Edwards and Muhammad have fought once before, back in March 2021 at UFC Fight Night 187 in Las Vegas.

Their bout was declared a no-contest after an accidental eye poke from Edwards in the second round left Muhammad unable to continue.

The UFC 304 co-main event between interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall and Curtis Blaydes is also a rematch.

Aspinall blew out his knee in the opening 15 seconds of the fight, but will now get the opportunity to avenge the inconclusive defeat.

Elsewhere on the bill, Paddy Pimblett is set to face his toughest test to date in top 15-ranked lightweight contender Bobby Green.

Meanwhile, Molly McCann, Muhammad Mokaev and Arnold Allen also feature on the stacked card.