Leon Edwards has been told he was "lucky" to knockout Kamaru Usman after losing the majority of their title fight.
Edwards, 30, produced one of the greatest comebacks in UFC history when he knocked out Usman with less than a minute to go in their welterweight title clash at UFC 278. It marked the first loss of Usman's UFC career and also the first time he had ever been knocked out, with 'The Nigerian Nightmare' being undefeated in over nine years heading into his sixth title defence against Edwards.
Top UFC lightweight Islam Makhachev, who fights Charles Oliveira for the division's vacant title in October, thinks Edwards will "100 per cent" be defeated by Usman if the pair meet for the third time. Usman outpointed Edwards when the pair met in the early stages of their UFC careers in 2015 and a potential trilogy fight is on the cards given how their rematch unfolded.
“Edwards got lucky because Usman beat him all five rounds, almost,” Makhachev told ESPN. “First round, Edwards took him down and take his back, but the other rounds Usman beat him very easy, took him down many times and smashed him there. When they’re going to fight again in rematch, 100 per cent I think Kamaru is going to beat him because Edwards have same problem, always with wrestling guys.”
Usman assured fans he was in good health after the brutal knockout and is focused on winning back his title by facing Edwards for the third time. Edwards wants his first title defence to take place in England, with UFC boss Dana White scouting potential stadiums for the fight. The UFC have typically hosted their UK Fight Night events in arenas, making an event at a stadium a first for the promotion.
Do you think Leon Edwards can beat Kamaru Usman in a trilogy fight? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below
Edwards was recently accused of cheating in the fight by MMA analyst Chael Sonnen as he said: "Leon cheated in that match a whole bunch of times. That is not a headline or a topic that is out there anywhere. He was frustrated in positions and had no way out to the extent that he cheated repeatedly, not once, not an accident, not the referee didn't see it.
"The referee broke the act five or six times, Leon changed the position and got out of it three times by cheating." White has since labelled Sonnen's comments as "silly, ridiculous and completely unfair".
