Leon Edwards took on Kamaru Usman in a title rematch in the main-event at UFC 286. ‘Rocky’ looked to make his first welterweight title defense in front of his home fans at the O2 arena in London on Saturday.
While both fighters mostly gauged each other in the opening frame, Edwards likely edged out the round with an emphatic body kick. ‘Rocky’ also received a stern warning from referee Herb Dean for grabbing Usman’s glove.
Edwards landed a huge knee in the second round after an early pause in action due to an unintentional low blow from the champ. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ bounced back with a flush right hand followed by his first takedown of the fight.
Leon Edwards lost a point for a blatant fence grab in the third round before landing his third (fourth?) unintentional low blow of the night. Both fighters went toe-to-toe for the rest of the round, with Usman likely edging out the round due to the point deduction from ‘Rocky’.
Edwards’ display of excellent takedown defense continued into the championship rounds while his jab started finding its mark more often. While ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ finally managed to score a takedown in the final round, he couldn’t hold the champion down for long.
Leon Edwards successfully defended his title for the first time with a majority decision win (48-46, 48-46, 47-47) over Kamaru Usman in the main-event at UFC 286.
Colby Covington was in attendance for Leon Edwards vs Kamaru Usman 3
Colby Covington, who was present cageside, called out Edwards for the next welterweight title shot. ‘Rocky’ accused ‘Chaos’ of ducking him for a long time but expressed interest in a ‘little trip to Miami’.
‘Rocky’ is now undefeated in 12 straight outings, with his last loss dating back to his first clash against Usman in 2015. Meanwhile, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ has dropped consecutive title fights against Edwards after mounting a fifteen-fight winning streak.
Usman was gracious in his defeat, paying his sincere respects to UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards.
