If Nate Diaz gets past Khamzat Chimaev, Leon Edwards is willing to give him a title shot.
Prior to dethroning welterweight champion Kamaru Usman with a last-minute head-kick knockout this past Saturday at UFC 278, Edwards (20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) picked up a marquee win over Nate Diaz (20-13 MMA, 15-11 UFC) last year at UFC 263.
Edwards dominated Diaz for five rounds until he got rocked with less than a minute left, but “Rocky” survived. So if Diaz manages to beat undefeated Chimaev (11-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) in his upcoming UFC 279 headliner on Sept. 10, Edwards is more than happy to grant him a rematch.
“I would 100 percent give Nate a shot, though,” Edwards said on “The MMA Hour.” “The scenes would be crazy. I would 100 percent give Nate a shot, because Nate’s a G. I always said it, even after the fight: He is who he is. He’s one of the greatest. The game has never changed him. So if that does happen then Nate’s definitely getting a shot.”
With UFC 279 being the final fight on his contract, Diaz, who hasn’t won since August 2019, would have to re-sign with the promotion for that to be possible. UFC president Dana White initially said Chimaev is next in line for a title shot if he beats Diaz, but Edwards is also open to a trilogy bout with Usman at Wembley Stadium in London.
