Four months after dropping his UFC welterweight title to Belal Muhammad, ‘Rocky’ has revealed that he plans on making his return to the octagon in early 2025.
Whilst the former champion remained coy about who his next opponent will be, the slick striking specialist did tease that he’s plotting another major title run in the New Year.
Leon Edwards teases main event spot for UFC London in early 2025
Former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards was in attendance for the superb Sunny Edwards vs Galal Yafai boxing card down in Birmingham last night; earning himself a roar from his home crowd whenever he popped up on the big screen.
During the DAZN broadcast, Edwards was asked about when and where he’s going to make his return to the UFC octagon.
According to ‘Rocky’, he’ll be one-half of the headlining attraction for UFC Fight Night 255, scheduled for the O2 Arena in London, England, on March 22, 2025.
Whilst Edwards didn’t mention a specific name, and considering the WW schedule over the next two weeks, there’s only a handful of potential opponents who would make sense for March – Sean Brady, and Jack Della Maddalena are the first who spring to mind.
Whoever his opponent may be, it must be a meaningful matchup since in a recent interview with MyProtein, Edwards also teased that he plans on recapturing his welterweight title by the end of 2025.
“My goal right now is obviously to get the belt back. I’d love to be champion again by the end of next year, or around this time next year. So, I’m just putting steps in place.
“I hadn’t lost a fight in like nine years, so I was just getting used to that feeling again; I hate losing, more than I love winning… My goal is to be a two-time world champion.”
A quick look at the confirmed UFC schedule for Q1 2025
As of December 1, the UFC has officially announced their PPV and Fight Night schedule all the way up until the end of March 2025 – take a quick look at the upcoming slate below.
- UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura – December 7, Las Vegas
- UFC on ESPN: Covington vs Buckley – December 14, Tampa
- UFC Fight Night 249 – January 11, Las Vegas
- UFC 311 – January 18, Inglewood
- UFC Fight Night 250 – February 1, Riyadh
- UFC 312 – February 9, Sydney
- UFC Fight Night 251 – February 15, Las Vegas
- UFC Fight Night 252 – February 22, Seattle
- UFC Fight Night 253 – March 1, Las Vegas
- UFC 313 – March 8, Las Vegas
- UFC Fight Night 254 – March 15, Las Vegas
- UFC Fight Night 255 – March 22, London
- UFC Fight Night 256 – March 29, Mexico City
Whilst the majority of those cards still do not have a main event announced, a reminder that the UFC 311 PPV event is expected to be headlined by Islam Makhachev vs Arman Tsarukyan.