Leon Edwards finally gets his long-awaited crack at welterweight champion Kamaru Usman this weekend at UFC 278. Ahead of the main-event clash in Salt Lake City, Texas, Edwards claimed he feels that “money” has changed the pound-for-pound king.
On Saturday night, Edwards gets the opportunity to gain redemption over the champion after the pairing’s first meeting back in 2015 fell in favour of Usman, which was solely down to dominate wrestling “The Nigerian Nightmare” displayed. Since then, nobody has managed to defeat Edwards, with the Birmingham native posing a ten-fight win streak.
Analysts have put forward the concern that Edwards’s long-haul of inactivity could play a factor in the bout. The Team Renagade representative has had one full-fight dating back to 2019, which saw the thirty-year-old defeat, Nate Diaz by unanimous decision, but not without some controversy. Stockton’s own was able to hurt him in the dying seconds of the fight. Edwards did bank one round over Belal Muhammad, but the bout was declared a no-contest after Muhammad suffered an eye poke.
Usman, on the other hand, has been destroying everyone the UFC has put in front of him, cementing himself as the top dog in the P4P rankings. The Nigerian-born aims to secure his sixth welterweight title defence with a victory over Edwards. If successful, Edwards would join Colby Covington, Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal on the list.
Edwards threw shade and addressed Usman’s recent outfits while undertaking public appearances and believes money has changed the 21-fight-vet. Furthering his comment, he claims he looks like Terry Crews from the famous 2004 comedy, White Chicks.
Leon Edwards on The MMA Hour
“You know Terry Crews from White Chicks? He (Kamaru Usman) looks like that guy from White Chicks,” Leon Edwards said of Kamaru Usman on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani. “He’s changed. Never got a t-shirt on. The money’s gotten to his head.”
If Edwards is able to dethrone the champion on Saturday evening, he will be written in British MMA history books. Following in the footsteps of Michael Bisping, becoming the second UFC world champion to hail from the United Kingdom.
Who are you siding with on Saturday night? Can Leon Edwards shock the world, or will Kamaru Usman retain once again?
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images and Embed from Getty Images
