Leon
Edwards and Jorge
Masvidal will get a chance to settle a feud that began more
than two years ago when they square off at UFC
269.
The pairing was initially
reported by Ariel Helwani and later confirmed by promotion
broadcast partner
ESPN. Both fighters have verbally agreed to the bout, but
contracts have not yet been signed. Edwards vs. Masvidal will be a
three-round affair.
Edwards and Masvidal famously crossed paths at UFC Fight Night 147
in London on March 16, 2019. Masvidal defeated Darren Till
via second-round KO and Edwards took a split verdict over Gunnar
Nelson at the event, but it was
what happened backstage that really made headlines. Masvidal
was giving an interview when he began exchanging words with
Edwards, who was nearby. “Gamebred” then left the interview set to
confront the Englishman, and shortly thereafter the fighters
engaged in a brief altercation before being separated. That
incident led to Masvidal’s famous “three-piece with a soda” line,
but the two haven’t yet crossed paths since that incident.
“Despite earning the next title shot, [Edwards] has always been
willing to fight Jorge first, provided the terms were correct,”
Edwards’ manager, Tim Simpson, told ESPN. “We are very happy with
the deal, and excited to compete in December, and then for a world
title thereafter.”
The 30-year-old Edwards is unbeaten in his last 10 promotional
appearances, with a no contest against Belal
Muhammad the only blemish on his ledger during that time. Most
recently, the Team Renegade representative took a five-round
decision over Nate Diaz at
UFC 263. He also owns notable victories against the likes of
Rafael dos
Anjos, Donald
Cerrone and Vicente
Luque.
Masvidal, meanwhile, is coming off back-to-back losses to Kamaru
Usman in welterweight championship bouts. “Gamebred” initially
stepped in on short notice to face Usman at UFC 251, where he
dropped a unanimous decision in July 2020. Because of those
circumstances, Masvidal was granted a rematch at UFC 261, and he
fell again to the champion — this time by second-round KO. Prior to
that, Masvidal authored a banner 2019 campaign that included
finishes of Diaz, Ben Askren
and Till.
UFC 269 takes place on Dec. 12 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas
and is topped by a lightweight title tilt between Charles
Oliveira and Dustin
Poirier.