Leon Edwards is completely focused on defeating Sean Brady in the UFC London main event this Saturday, but he also understands how a dominant win could greatly benefit him.
This fight is Edwards` first since losing his UFC welterweight title to Belal Muhammad last July, and he`s more motivated than ever to get back to the top. The 33-year-old explained that the unusual early start time for that fight in England (around 5 a.m.) and some minor injuries prevented him from performing at his peak.
That`s why Edwards is determined to go out and decisively beat Brady so he can get another chance at the title as soon as possible.
“My head is completely set on that,” Edwards told MMA Fighting. “Right now, my focus is on Sean Brady this weekend. After that, it’s towards the title. That’s what I’m concentrating on.”
Edwards was originally scheduled to face Jack Della Maddalena on Saturday, but Della Maddalena was removed to fight Muhammad for the title instead after top welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov couldn`t compete due to injury.
There’s no information yet on how long Rakhmonov will be out, but Edwards knows the UFC is all about timing and opportunity. If he can impressively defeat Brady, he might just skip ahead in line for a title shot.
“I feel that’s exactly the situation we’re in,” Edwards said. “I feel like everything is falling into place. The MMA world is aligning things for me to get my belt back. But it all begins on Saturday night. I need to go out there, handle business, and then see what happens.”
Edwards can`t make any future plans until he gets past Brady. Assuming everything goes well, he’s even willing to stay prepared for May in case something happens with Della Maddalena.
“You never know,” Edwards said. “Injuries happen, things happen. It’s a crazy sport, so I’ll stay ready and see what unfolds.”
Because Rakhmonov was unavailable to fight in May, Edwards knows there’s a real opportunity to take his spot if he performs strongly against Brady. While there were no objections to Rakhmonov getting a title shot, his recent win over Ian Machado Garry was much closer than many expected. Before that fight, Rakhmonov had a perfect finishing record, including six straight wins in the UFC.
He couldn’t do the same against Garry, who fought hard for all five rounds and almost pulled off a late finish after getting Rakhmonov’s back on the ground and attempting submissions.
For his part, Edwards never avoids any challenge, so he definitely wasn’t avoiding Rakhmonov. However, the fight against Garry gave him some ideas about how a potential matchup between them might play out.
“From what I remember, it wasn’t as exciting as I thought it would be,” Edwards said about Rakhmonov vs. Garry. “Considering how much they were hyping up Shavkat, calling him a boogeyman in the division, it was just an average fight. It wasn’t the exciting, back-and-forth battle everyone expected.”
“I know they trained together before, so maybe that’s why they were more cautious of each other’s style. But there are definitely weaknesses in both of their games, in Shavkat’s game and Ian’s game. I think that was clear in that fight.”
As much as he wants to get back to the title or address other potential contenders in the division, Edwards knows his primary focus needs to be solely on Brady.
He just hopes Brady comes ready to fight because Edwards is confident that their matchup is the perfect chance to deliver a highlight-reel finish in front of his home fans.
“I think Sean will engage,” Edwards said. “He’ll provide opportunities to get the finish, and that’s what I’m aiming for. I’m looking to go out there and get a finish over him and prove to the world that I’m still the best welterweight in the division.”
“I feel like the way he fights, there are going to be a lot of openings for me to hurt him, and I’m looking forward to it.”
