Leon Edwards’ confidence at peak ahead of trilogy bout against Kamaru Usman, claims coach - ‘This is straight danger’
Leon Edwards' first title defense will come this weekend when he faces Kamaru Usman at UFC 286. The welterweight champion's coach, Joby Clayton, claimed that his confidence is at an all-time high after knocking out his opponent at UFC 278 in the summer of 2022.
Speaking in episode 1 of the UFC 286 Embedded: Vlog Series, Clayton discussed the ramifications of a title defense in England, stating:
"Danger! This is straight danger. I think having the title defense in England is very special. It's very special for Leon himself, but it's also special for UK MMA. It's going to lift and inspire so many young people and Leon already inspires so many young people about, but I feel that this is going to elevate it even more."
The coach then discussed how the UFC 278 victory has affected the confidence of 'Rocky', adding:
"I've always found Leon to have this wonderful blend of confidence and intelligence and since the victory, he's become even more confident. But it's also given him so much experience that he can now bring to London."
Check out the comments from Leon Edwards' coach below (starting at the 0:54 mark):
Leon Edwards, who was down three rounds to one with less than a minute left in the final round, was able to knockout Kamaru Usman with a perfectly-timed head kick to become just the second UFC champion from England. 'Rocky' will look to pick up his first title defense at UFC 286 this weekend.
#UFC278 Official Scorecard: Kamaru Usman vs Leon Edwards (@Leon_EdwardsMMA)
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Leon Edwards' first title defense: Kamaru Usman shares that he's always wanted to fight in the UK
Kamaru Usman will look to reclaim the welterweight title at UFC 286 this weekend. The longtime welterweight champion recently revealed that he has always wanted to fight in the UK, stating:
"I've always wanted to come here and fight. I have a tremendous amount of fans here - African fans, English fans, Indian fans - all around who constantly begged me and messaged me or tweeted me to visit the UK or come and put on something or do something for them here in the UK because they would love to see me and interact with me and it just never worked out."
Check out Kamaru Usman's comments on fighting in England below (starting at the 6:26 mark):
Usman added that he could have waited and asked for the bout to be in Las Vegas, Nevada. However, he saw this as the perfect opportunity to fight in England for the first time. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' will look to reclaim the welterweight title at UFC 286.