Leon Edwards Explains Why Bellator Is A “Weird” Promotion

UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards believes that there’s one element of Bellator MMA that makes the promotion “weird.”

While the Edwards family’s focus will now mostly be on Leon and his chance to capture undisputed UFC gold at UFC 278 in August, last month, the attention was on the exploits of Fabian.

While Leon has fought his way towards the top inside the Octagon, Fabian plies his trade in the Bellator cage, where he’s earned the #3 spot in the welterweight rankings. He secured that place by snapping a two-fight skid at Bellator 281.

In front of a home crowd inside London’s OVO Wembley Arena, Fabian Edwards delivered a frightening knockout of MMA legend Lyoto Machida, rocking him with a vicious elbow before sending the former UFC champion to sleep with some grimace-worthy ground-and-pound.

In the celebratory scenes, Leon Edwards rushed into the cage ecstatic at his brother’s performance. And during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, “Rocky” looked back on the stoppage, branding Fabian’s handiwork as “spectacular.”

“You see that finish, you see that finish? Lovely. The elbows!” Edwards said. “The finish was brilliant. He’s one of those fighters, where he needed the win, ’cause he was coming off two losses. So, it was spectacular.”

Fabian Edwards is set for the next test on his road to the title in October when he heads to Italy for Bellator Milan. But while he’s undoubtedly earned a big-name opponent, Leon doesn’t believe it’s guaranteed for his sibling given the “weird” nature of Bellator and its matchmaking.

“He’s fighting October… Milan. There’s a card in Italy… For sure (he’s earned a big name),” said Edwards. “If it was me, though, if I was him, I’m saying to him, get like, two good names, top-15 guys, just to get the momentum back, and then go to a title shot. Because Bellator is weird, it’s like, a mad organization.

“One minute you’re fighting Lyoto Machida, the next minute you’re fighting some guy from the corner shop,” added Edwards with a laugh. “There’s no system to it. It’s a weird promotion. They do fantastic in the UK. It’s good for UK fighters what they’re doing in Bellator.”

While an opponent is yet to be determined, it seems set that Fabian Edwards will enter the cage again before the year is out, this time on foreign soil. With Leon looking ahead to a trip to Utah for his title challenge against Kamaru Usman, it looks likely to be a period full of travel for the Edwards’.

What do you make of Bellator’s matchmaking system?

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