Judging by the starting odds published by bookmakers, Shavkat Rakhmonov is a much more serious threat to Leon Edwards than Belal Muhammad.
In the fight against the American, the odds on the reigning UFC champion’s victory are 1.25 (80.00% probability), while the Brit’s success against the Kazakh fighter is estimated at odds of 1.909 (52.38% probability).
The odds of Muhammad and Rakhmonov defeating Edwards are estimated at odds of 4 (probability 25.00%) and 1.909 (probability 52.38%), respectively.
Bookmakers opened betting on the potential fights a day after Leon Edwards successfully defended his UFC welterweight championship belt at UFC 296 in Las Vegas with a five-round unanimous decision over Colby Covington, and Shavkat Rakhmonov finished Stephen Thompson with a second-round rear-naked choke in the third event of the tournament.
Meanwhile, UFC head Dana White did not name Belal Muhammad, who insured the title fight, as Edwards’ next opponent, promising to decide the number one contender over the New Year holidays.
Source: https://fighttime.ru/news/item/33441-nazvan-favorit-v-boyakh-edvardsa-protiv-rakhmonova-i-mukhammada.html?rand=19907
