‘Where that b-tch Jorge at?’ – Edwards calls out Masvidal, gets offer from Holland instead

Leon Edwards is lookin’ for a fight. The top ranked UFC welterweight hasn’t set foot in the cage since July of last year, when he bested Rafael dos Anjos on his way to a five round unanimous decision victory. The months since have seen bouts scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic, and some acrimonious contract negotiations that briefly got ‘Rocky’ stripped of his spot in the UFC’s top 10.

Come November, however, it seemed as though Edwards was all set to return to action against fast-rising wunderkind Khamzat Chimaev. Sadly, positive COVID-19 tests for both men have seen that fight fall by the wayside twice now. And rather than wait to see if the third time’s a charm, it looks like Edwards is just hoping to move on. While Vicente Luque has shown his interest in a rematch with Edwards, the Jamaican-born Team Renegade fighter is making his own call-out.

Edwards and Jorge Masvidal have had a well-publicized war of words, stretching back to a confrontation following UFC Fight Night: Till vs. Masvidal. What started as a few heated comments quickly turned physical, with Masvidal approaching Edwards and delivering his now infamous “three piece with a soda,” back stage, after the event. Both men have since voiced their interest in facing off in the cage, but an official booking has never seemed close to coming together.

‘Gamebred’ last competed at UFC 251, after winning out in his own game of chicken with the UFC over contract negotiations. The longtime ATT talent stepped up to face Kamaru Usman on just a few days notice, after a planned title bout between Usman and Gilbert Burns fell through. Usman won the bout by unanimous decision.

Whether or not Masvidal is ready to step in against Edwards on less than a month’s notice, the opportunity to get a headlining slot atop a UFC card has at least a couple fighters champing at the bit. Alongside Luque’s offer, Edwards has also caught the attention of one of the promotion’s most ‘anyone, anywhere, anytime’ talents. Kevin Holland already has a big fight in the works with Derrick Brunson on March 20th. But that hasn’t stopped the ‘Smack Man’ from throwing his name into the hat.

This wouldn’t be the first time Holland has offered himself up for a fight at 170 lbs. The Travis Lutter-trained athlete’s fantastic 2020 included a bid to take on rising slugger Daniel Rodriguez at Welterweight back in May. Unfortunately, a shoulder injury scrapped that fight.

Most recently Holland picked up the highlight win of his career, KOing former Strikeforce champion Jacare Souza in the first round of their bout at UFC 256. Could just be that he’ll start 2021 looking to pick up where he left off, with a chance to take out a top tier opponent on short notice.