With his decision win over Nate Diaz, Leon Edwards has gone the distance in 8 of 11 UFC victories.
Leon Edwards extended his UFC welterweight unbeaten streak to 10 on Saturday with a unamious decision win over Nate Diaz at UFC 263. The fight was a first for the UFC, a five-round, non-title, non-main event scrap.
Edwards, who entered the contest as the No. 3 ranked fighter in the official UFC welterweight rankings, had a chance to earn a title shot with a noteworthy victory over Diaz. Edwards, who has eight decision wins in his 11 UFC triumphs, did not deliver that spectacular performance.
Most of the talk in the bout’s aftermath was about Diaz’s near comeback win. Despite getting shutout in the first four rounds and bleeding from a cut above his eye and a gash on the side of his head, Diaz stunned Edwards in the final minute of the fight and looked as if he was close to earning himself one of the biggest come from behind wins in UFC history.
UFC president Dana White had high praise for the tenacious Diaz.
“His leg was done in the first round, he went five rounds taking leg kicks, bleeding out of both sides of his head,” White said after the event. “One was squirting this way, one way squirting this way. He was still doing what the Diaz brothers do. He was working the whole fight to get into his head and try to make him make a mistake, and then he eventually caught him in the fifth round. He’s unbelievable. He’s gonna be asking us for a six-round fight next time.”
As for Edwards getting a title shot, White was asked if Edwards or Colby Covington was the No. 1 contender for a shot at current champion, Kamaru Usman. The UFC boss kept his answer simple, “Colby.”
With his eighth UFC decision win, Edwards is tied for fifth for most decision wins in UFC welterweight history. Among active UFC 170-pounders, only Usman (9) and Neil Magny (12) have more decision wins.
Below is a look at the stats from the Edwards vs. Diaz matchup.