March 15, 2023 11:00 am ET
LONDON – Leon Edwards thinks beating Kamaru Usman for a 2nd straight time might perhaps perhaps signal his cessation.
Welterweight champion Edwards (20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) defends his title in opposition to Usman (20-2 MMA, 15-1 UFC) in a trilogy bout that headlines Saturday’s UFC 286 match at The O2 in London. The first card airs on pay-per-interrogate following prelims on ESPNews and early prelims on ESPN+.
Edwards is convinced knocking out Usman of their 2nd warfare at UFC 278 will obtain impacted him mentally and wouldn’t be surprised if Usman retired with another loss to him.
“Our mentalities are in two utterly different locations,” Edwards mentioned at Wednesday’s UFC 286 media day. “I the truth is feel address he’s on his device out, and I became as soon as going to open the door for him – give him another direction to prepare his vogue dreams and prepare wherever he needs to slide.
“I judge he’s already got one – one thing’s out the door and I became as soon as going to add to that. Whether he retires after or no longer, it’s as much as him.”
Edwards became as soon as down 3-1 on the judges’ scorecards sooner than he landed a head-kick knockout, but the champion attributes that to Salt Lake City’s altitude. Though Edwards slowed down for the length of the warfare, he mentioned he by no device felt in any exact hazard.
“I do know Kamaru – he’s the utilization of that as, ‘Oh yeah, he became as soon as tired in the warfare.’ Whether I became as soon as tired or no longer, you bought knocked out – and that’s it,” Edwards mentioned. “So at the cessation of the day, that’s all that issues.
“Even though I became as soon as tired, he couldn’t bother me. I wasn’t bother, the truth is – it became over again a fatigue narrate. He became as soon as wailing at my gloves and I became as soon as catching it all on my gloves. Even on my worst day, I defeated him. He’s improved from when we’ve first fought, but so obtain I.”
For more on the card, slide to MMA Junkie’s match hub for UFC 286.
