Leon Edwards plans to crash Islam Makhachev’s party at Madison Square Garden and begin a second run towards the UFC welterweight title this November.
The ex-champion lost his belt last summer to Belal Muhammad, before an unprecedented defeat in a London homecoming to Sean Brady in March. Since then he has focused on training his brother Fabian Edwards for his run in the PFL World Tournament, which he won in stunning fashion last night.
Now, all eyes turn back to the elder sibling, who told Bloody Elbow exclusively in the aftermath of his brother’s victory that he wants on the undercard of UFC 322. The event is expected to be headlined by Jack Della Maddalena, who dethroned Muhammad in May, against legendary lightweight Makhachev.
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Leon Edwards confirms UFC 322 comeback plan
Leon Edwards was in Hollywood, Florida last night to corner his brother Fabian in the finals of the PFL World Tournament. Since his shock defeat to Sean Brady back in March, the former champion has been training in secret, but the team’s focus has been on his sibling’s back-to-back-to-back training camps.
Now, with another belt heading back to Team Renegade, the elder brother is fully focused on his return. And speaking briefly with Bloody Elbow on Thursday night, he revealed that his comeback timeline would see him back at the world’s most famous arena.
“November for sure,” he replied when asked for a timeline on his comeback, before replying in the affirmative to Madison Square Garden as a venue. “I think JDM is fighting Islam Makhachev at MSG so I want to be on the same card, you know?
“I feel good, I’ve been training and helping Fabian in camp. Now I’m ready to go, I’ve waited for the division to settle a little bit and now I’m ready to go. I’m one or two away from getting my belt back so I’m locking in and I’m going to get it done.”
Leon Edwards unsure on prediction for Jack Della Maddalena vs Islam Makhachev
During his historic run as lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev looked unbeatable as he racked up the most title defences ever for the division. However, he has admitted to struggling with gaining weight for a move up to welterweight, where the likes of Della Maddalena may start camp at over 205lb.
And Edwards was keen to stay on the fence when asked for a prediction in the main event. Both men are potential opponents on his planned route to the gold, and he seemed unsure as to who would do the job in November.
“I don’t know,” he said. “It’s hard to say because JDM is a good scrambler, bigger guy so we’ll have to see. Let’s see [if Islam is big enough]!”