“Can’t let it go” – UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards reveals he is NOT OVER his grudge against Jorge Masvidal
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Leon Edwards (L), Jorge Masvidal (R)
Around three months back, Leon Edwards shocked the world by defeating long-time welterweight champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 278. With a scintillating leg kick KO, that completely flatlined Usman, Leon Edwards was able to overturn a 39-37 deficit on the judges’ scorecards going into the fifth round. Looking forward, there are a couple of exciting match-ups for the Briton, with the trilogy fight against Usman the obvious one.
However, a fight against Jorge Masvidal could also be compelling for “Rocky”. The two share a lot of bad blood – in 2019, after his finish of Darren Till in London, Masvidal entered into a backstage scrap with Edwards and opened a cut just below his eye. Over the next three years, Leon Edwards’ repeatedly called for Masvidal to settle their business in the octagon, only for it to fall on deaf ears.
Now that he is champion, Edwards has no obligation to answer Masvidal’s title shot claims, given that he is 0-3 in the promotion since 2020. However, that doesn’t mean he has quite forgotten the animosity with Masvidal. Speaking about it, he said, “I can’t let it go. It’s not let go, and this happened three years go. Yeah, it’s not let go, and I have to get it back in the octagon or in the street. It has to be got back.”
The scrap happening in London, his own backyard, has seemingly left Edwards with a lingering bad taste in his mouth. He said, “I don’t like him. We had a scuffle backstage. That was in London, as well, my hometown, but they took him, moved him, hid him, and fled him out of my country.”
Jorge Masvidal is on a downward slide in the welterweight division of the UFC
Jorge Masvidal has only fought in big events since 2020. Coming in on short notice to fight the then-champion Kamaru Usman, Masvidal lost the decision to the Nigerian in his first title shot. The second fight didn’t look as close – Usman KO’d Masvidal stiff within 7 minutes to stay undisputed. Next up was yet another grudge fight against Colby Covington, where he was completely dominated on the ground.
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Despite having a bad record in the last two years, “Gamebred” should not rule out a title shot against Leon Edwards, given their history. That being said, the title shot will be on rocky grounds, given he has no wins in two years, and on two occasions, he was severely outclassed. To add to that, for the 38-year-old, age is not on his side.
The truth of the situation is that Jorge Masvidal finds himself #11 in the welterweight rankings – as such, he must get a win under his belt to talk of any title shot. Luckily for him, Gilbert Burns has offered to fight him on multiple occasions – a win over “Durinho” could thrust him back into the top five.
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Udayan Mukherjee
(382 Articles Published)