Leon
Edwards was well on his way to an uneventful, lopsided win
against Nate Diaz at
UFC
263 before the Stockton, Calif., native offered one final salvo
in the fifth frame.
After failing to mount much in the way of significant offense for
the majority of the fight, Diaz tagged Edwards with a left hand in
the waning moments of their non-title affair. The blow sent “Rocky”
stumbling across the cage, and Diaz stalked his man in hopes of a
finish. While more punches were landed, Diaz couldn’t put Edwards
away. It was a rare moment of suspense in a contest that was
largely dominated by the well-rounded skills of the 29-year-old
Brit.
“Like I said, it was a wild minute… To be dominant in a fight and
then get caught with a shot out of the blue, I was like, ‘What
the!?’” Edwards said. “There was one minute left, I was up four
rounds but Nate is a legend, he’s been around in the sport for a
long time and he knows how to ride his shots, he knows how to stay
in there and fair play to him.”
After a headlining bout against Belal
Muhammad ended in an unsatisfying no contest in March, Edwards
secured his first victory since July 2019 and extended his unbeaten
streak at 170 pounds to 10. The Team Renegade representative
nonetheless found flaws with a performance that saw him control
range with low kicks and left hands while mixing in several
takedowns.
“It was all right,” he said. “I give it a seven out of 10. I could
have picked more hands, let more hands go, pick more body shots
with my hands… Like I said, live and learn. I can’t believe I
caught that shot in the last round, but you have to stay switched
off the whole fight, can’t get lazy, and fair play to him.”
Speaking of fair play, Edwards believes that the win over Diaz
cements him as the No. 1 contender in the UFC’s welterweight
division.
“I feel the world knows what I deserve next. I deserve a world
title shot next,” Edwards said. “That’s nine in a row, there’s no
one else that’s doing what I’m doing in the sport. I’m the one
going out there and accepting all the fights, all of them ranked
opponents. Khamzat [Chimaev], Diaz, Belal [Muhammad]… Everyone.
I’m the one that is saying yes. I’m not turning down fights. I feel
the world knows what I deserve next. The world title is next for
me.”
Edwards may very well be disappointed in the coming months. At
Saturday’s post-fight press conference, UFC president Dana White
doubled down on his statement that Colby
Covington will receive a rematch against Kamaru
Usman in the next 170-pound title fight. In the meantime,
Edwards could be booked against Jorge
Masvidal. The two have a history following their
backstage confrontation at UFC Fight Night 147 in March
2019.