A championship rematch between current Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman, and “BMF” title holder, Jorge Masvidal, seems to be picking up a lot of traction.
After Usman knocked out Gilbert Burns at UFC 258 (see it), “The Nigerian Nightmare” called for the fight in an attempt to silence a rather loquacious “Gamebred” once and for all. Naturally, Masvidal didn’t turn down the challenge and was quick to accept the chance to get revenge after he came up short against the champion at UFC 251 last July.
The man who seems to be left out in the mix, though, doesn’t think the fight will be any different. Indeed, Leon Edwards says the fight is nothing more than another easy payday for Usman because Masvidal simply doesn’t have what it takes to prosper in world title fights.
“I think Usman beats him 10 out of 10 times. I just don’t think Masvidal is a championship fighter. I think he’s a good fighter, good contender, but he will never be a champion in UFC,” said Edwards in a recent interview with ESPN.
“Usman is probably thinking about the money, right? Easy work for a high payday.”
Talks surfaced about the possibility of Usman and Masvidal coaching The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) before they throw down a second time. Masvidal’s manager recently tweeted that their side of the deal was done, and Usman followed up by posting a pic if him and Dana White getting ready or a sit-down.
As for Edwards, he has been trying to score a fight against Masvidal for some time now after the two had a backstage scuffle a few years ago which left “Rocky” bloody and angered. He was most recently shut down by Colby Covington, a man UFC matchmakers had in mind to welcome Edwards back to the Octagon after Khamzat Chimaev bowed out of their fight a second time.
It’s been a year and a half since Edwards last competed and his patience is running thin with every contender — Nate Diaz included — uninterested in fighting him.