As Leon Edwards begins his road to redemption, should the former UFC welterweight champion try to move up to middleweight for his return fight?
Whilst it might be a little early to put a definitive answer to such a question, there are those within the MMA community who are making that argument in regard to Rocky’s next move – including his greatest rival to date, former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman.
Leon Edwards shares first statement since title loss at UFC 304
A few days removed from his welterweight title defeat at UFC 304, and Leon Edwards has now shared his first statement following the decision loss to Belal Muhammad.
“To my fans, I’m sorry I couldn’t get the job done this time,” he wrote on Instagram.
“I have been through harder times than this in life and I will rise again. Thanks for all the love and support I will get this back in blood. #headshot”
The two top comments on the post are from UFC commentator Jon Anik, “Legend, Hall of Farmer, look forward to the return,” and fellow British star Arnold Allen, who wrote, “You’re an inspiration champ.”
Yet as Edwards vows to ‘rise again’ in the hope of reclaiming the UFC title, there is a discussion to be had about whether his return fight should be at 170lbs or whether ‘Rocky’ should try his hand at middleweight – a discussion that appears perpetuated by former foe, Kamaru Usman.
Kamaru Usman says Leon Edwards should move up to middleweight
Given that Kamaru Usman is currently 2-1 down against Leon Edwards, you might expect that the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ would be wanting another shot at ‘Rocky’ in the hope of squaring their iconic rivalry.
Yet the former welterweight champion actually believes that Edwards should instead move up to middleweight for his next bout, just as he did for his last fight against Khamzat Chimaev – albeit Usman stepped up to take that fight on 10 days’ notice.
Speaking via the latest episode of the Pound-4-Pound podcast with Henry Cejudo, Usman explained why he’d like to see Edwards trying to make his mark at 185lbs.
“I’m anxious to see how Leon Edwards is going to regroup and get back if he does get back. I know he was talking about moving up before this. I mean he’s a guy who I would see like to move up to middleweight.
“I would like to see him move up to middleweight if he can put the size on, because his style is- there’s not a lot of middleweights that are grappling like myself or Belal… I wouldn’t mind seeing him at middleweight.”
To his credit, Cejudo was quick to chime in with a key argument against such a move, explaining how that 15lbs difference between the two divisions is just too much for someone of Edwards’ stature – especially considering the ‘bad habits’ that he still has.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, I think there’s too much power at middleweight… The power up there is different, that’s why it’s special for someone to become a two-division champ but I don’t think Leon’s that guy or has that leverage.
“He still has those bad habits, he allows people to put the legs in, he stays too close to the cage – guys in that [middleweight] division, they bring a lot more power.”
Only a few hours after the latest episode of the P4P podcast dropped, Usman also shared a video of his live reaction to the UFC 304 main event and it has to be said, the video makes for some fascinating viewing for fellow fans of the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’.
Following the official rankings update, Leon Edwards retains the #1 spot in the welterweight rankings; one above Kamaru Usman, who also drops one place down into #2.