"They cannot reward that kind of behavior" - Chael Sonnen explains why UFC didn't book Jorge Masvidal vs. Leon Edwards after 'three piece and a soda' incident

Chael Sonnen (L) believes the altercation between Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal led to the fight not being booked [Credits: Beyond the Fight/YouTube, UFC Europe/Twitter]

Chael Sonnen has given his take on why the fight between Jorge Masvidal and Leon Edwards was not booked after their altercation three years ago.

The 'three-piece and a soda' incident occurred in March 2019 after Masvidal's win over Darren Till in London. 'Gamebred' was interrupted by Edwards during a backstage post-fight interview with Laura Sanko. He then proceeded to walk towards 'Rocky' and after exchanging a few words with the Brit, clocked him with a series of punches.

Jorge Masvidal and Leon Edwards exchange words and punches backstage during the ESPN+ post-show https://t.co/kYEkWxN8Io

In a new episode of the Beyond the Fight podcast, Sonnen explained that the UFC was forced to discard a matchup between the two welterweights at the time as they didn't want to reward that kind of behavior. The former UFC fighter said:

"The UFC could not make that fight. They could not do it, not right away. The UFC cannot make a fight that is predicated on something that shouldn't have happened. They shouldn't have fought in the case, that was a crime what we saw. The UFC was put in a position where they can't reward that kind of behaviour. Imagine the message that would have happened had they made that fight. It would have been a disaster."

Watch Chael Sonnen analyze the 2019 incident between Masvidal and Edwards below:

Over two years after their altercation, Jorge Masvidal and Leon Edwards were booked to fight at UFC 269. However, an injury to Masvidal forced the BMF titleholder to withdraw from the bout. Edwards later revealed that he wasn't surprised by his American counterpart's pull-out.

Leon Edwards is turning his attention to the champ after "fraud" Jorge Masvidal pulled out of their fight. 👀

#UFC269 | Full story: bit.ly/3C47Bnj https://t.co/ysXQnaOFaj

Leon Edwards wants his first title defense to be against Jorge Masvidal in London

Edwards is set to face welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in a highly-anticipated rematch at UFC 278 this weekend. The Brit is confident of avenging his defeat to Usman seven years ago, and already has his eyes set on his first title challenger.

Speaking at a UFC press conference, the 30-year-old Englishman reiterated his desire to take on Jorge Masvidal next.

"I would love to have Masvidal, you know? But, he needs to get wins. Let him get one win. Then imagine, like, him being back in London — like to headline London for the title, I'll give him the shot, you know? Just to show people that this man is nowhere near my level."

Watch the presser below:

Leon Edwards is on a 10-fight unbeaten streak since his loss to Usman in 2015 and looks confident of ending the impressive run of 'The Nigerian Nightmare'. Usman has beaten some of the biggest names in the division, including Colby Covington, Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal, so 'Rocky' will have to bring his A-game to upset all odds and become the new welterweight champion.

Watch their first fight below: