Leon Edwards has never had it easy in his life, from his childhood in Jamaica through to a lengthy path to the UFC title.
At times, it seems as though Leon Edwards would never get a shot at the UFC welterweight title, despite a lengthy unbeaten run.
But when he finally managed to get a rematch with Kamaru Usman, he knocked out the seemingly unbeatable ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ with one of the greatest head kicks in history.
Despite that, ‘Rocky’ went on to disappointingly lose his welterweight title against Belal Muhammad at UFC 304 on July 27.
Here is everything you need to know about Leon Edwards.
- READ MORE – ‘Bad for 10 years’… Kamaru Usman admitted knee injury nightmare before painful trilogy defeat
How old is Leon Edwards?
Leon Edwards was born on August 25th, 1991, in Kingston, Jamaica, though he fights out of Erdington, Birmingham, England.
He has a younger brother named Fabian who is currently in camp for a Bellator middleweight title fight. As of September 2025, he is 34 years old.
Leon Edwards’ height and weight
Leon Edwards is six feet tall and fights at 170 lbs in the UFC’s welterweight division. However, like all MMA fighters, he makes a considerable cut in order to hit that limit, with his walking around weight believed to be closer to 200 lbs.
While Edwards doesn’t tend to post photos of his ballooning in weight after intensive cuts like other fighters, there is some evidence of his usual weight.
His nutritionist, Jordan Sullivan, claims that after making 170 lbs for the Covington fight, he was 185 lbs within about 10 hours in time for ceremonial weigh-ins.
X/Twitter and Instagram accounts
Leon Edwards has a big presence on Instagram with 1.4 million followers, and you can become one of them at leonedwardsmma.
He also has 337k followers on X, formerly Twitter, on his account Leon-edwardsmma.
Who is Leon Edwards’ wife?
Leon Edwards may be a massive celebrity in the UK with a lot of tabloid interest, but he manages to keep his personal life private. He has never indicated whether or not he is married, and the mother of his child Jaydon, is also unknown.
Leon Edwards’ MMA record
| W-L-D | (T)KO | Sub |
| 22-5-0 | 7-0 | 3-1 |
Career stats
| Significant Strikes Landed per Minute | 2.62 |
| Significant Striking Accuracy | 54% |
| Significant Strikes Absorbed per Minute | 2.42 |
| Significant Strike Defense (the % of opponents’ strikes that did not land) | 53% |
| Average Takedowns Landed per 15 minutes | 1.18 |
| Takedown Accuracy | 36% |
| Takedown Defense (the % of opponents’ TD attempts that did not land) | 64% |
| Average Submissions Attempted per 15 minutes | 0.36 |
Leon Edwards’ net worth
All UFC fighters’ net worths are speculated on during the build-up to their big fights. But there is little way of knowing, particularly with someone like Edwards who tends to fight in the likes of Las Vegas or London, where purses are not disclosed.
There is a report from Clutchpoints that claims he is worth $1.5million, but it is likely that he is worth considerably more after multiple pay-per-view headlining world title defenses.
Leon Edwards’ next fight
Edwards’ next fight will be against Carlos Prates at UFC 322.
The pair will face off on November 15, 2025, in a Welterweight clash between the two top-ranked competitors in the division.
Dana White and Leon Edwards
The relationship between Dana White and Leon Edwards was at times frosty, but it appears that any issues they had have been solved.
The Brit wasn’t interested in facing Covington last time out, but his promoter forced the bout through, much like a number of fights in his career.
One event that drew the pair closer together was UFC 300, where Edwards accepted three offers to headline.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work out for him, but White was very complimentary of his welterweight champion after the fact.
“Let me say this. Leon Edwards has had like three opponents through this whole thing,” White told the media. “Leon Edwards doesn’t say no to anybody. This kid is an absolute stud. He’s had like three opponents thrown at him during UFC 300.
“Yes, yes, and yes. He was willing to take on anybody. Kid’s an absolute stud. Leon, thank you. Much respect.”
Colby Covington vs Leon Edwards
Leon Edwards’ last world title defense came at UFC 296 in December. He faced the former interim champion Colby Covington, who goaded him intensely in the build-up ahead of a relatively lackluster showing, which the Brit won by decision over five rounds.
Kamaru Usman vs Leon Edwards
The Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman trilogy started on an undercard in December of 2015. After winning The Ultimate Fighter, Usman was able to utilize his phenomenal wrestling ability in order to keep Edwards down and win a comfortable decision
Edwards vs Usman 2
After years apart, Edwards and Usman were brought together again in 2022 after a lengthy unbeaten run for the Brit following their initial meeting. He had never lost after the first bout with Usman, but looked dreadful in their rematch until the final round when he landed a stunning head kick knockout.
The trilogy fight
After each winning one of their fights, and Usman winning all but one of their eight rounds, a trilogy was instantly booked. Edwards put in an even better performance against the formerly unbeatable Usman and managed to win a relatively comfortable decision in front of a home crowd in London at UFC 286.
Nate Diaz vs Leon Edwards
After years of frustration from cancelled fights to his eye poke on Belal Muhammad, Edwards finally made his return to the octagon in June of 2021. He faced Nate Diaz at UFC 263, and dominated a five-round co-main event before being tagged at the end for a viral moment.
Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad 1
The initial meeting between Leon Edwards and Belal Muhammad happened behind closed doors at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas in March of 2021. After an impressive first round from Edwards, he poked his rival in the eye, and the fight had to be stopped, resulting in a No Contest.
Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev
Many times during the pandemic era, Edwards was booked to face then-unranked prospect Khamzat Chimaev. They traded pullouts after contracting coronavirus, and Chimaev has arguably never fully recovered from his infection, with his career dogged by health issues.
They were booked together three times, and still appear to have unfinished business after Chimaev pulled out twice. However, with Chimaev pulling out of his last fight against Robert Whittaker, it remains to be seen if he will ever be back.
Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad
Edwards lost the UFC Welterweight championship via unanimous decision when he was challenged by Belal Muhammad at UFC 304.
It was a close fight, with two judges scoring it 48-47 for Muhammad, but that was little solace for the former champion in Manchester, England.
Leon Edwards vs Sean Brady
Edwards lost against Sean Brady in his second defeat in a row for the former Welterweight champion.
This was his first fight since losing his title to Muhammad, but he could not compete with Brady at the O2 Arena in London.
Edwards tapped out to Brady’s guillotine choke after he dominated the former champion throughout the fight, adding more misery to Edwards’ 2025.