Matt Brown explains why Leon Edwards deserves to fight for the UFC welterweight title more than Colby Covington
UFC welterweight Matt Brown is arguably one of the best fighters from the past decade who never got the opportunity to fight for the UFC title.
However, the veteran fighter has closely observed the welterweight title picture in recent times and has recently shared his thoughts on potential challengers to Kamaru Usman's championship reign.
While speaking to Andrew Whitelaw of Sportskeeda, Brown drew attention to Leon Edwards and Colby Covington's career trajectories since fighting Kamaru Usman.
Matt Brown explained how Edwards has won nine fights since dropping a unanimous decision against Usman, whereas Covington hasn't been a very active fighter in recent times.
'The Immortal' believes that the Englishman deserves to fight for the welterweight title by virtue of his activity level and consistency. Matt Brown told Sportskeeda-
"I definitely think Leon (Edwards) has earned (the title shot). He's on what? A nine or ten-fight winning streak. You know his last loss was to (Kamaru) Usman. So yeah, I think he's certainly earned it. Colby's earned it too though. But I think Leon has just simply earned it more. That's all it comes down to. This guy deserves the spotlight. He deserves to get in there and fight for the title. Colby, you know, unfortunately, for whatever his reasoning is, he hasn't fought," Matt Brown said.
First-ranked welterweight Colby Covington (16-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC) and third-ranked Leon Edwards (19-3-1NC MMA, 11-2-1NC UFC) are the frontrunners for a shot at the UFC welterweight title.
Both fighters have previously lost to reigning champion Kamaru Usman and are undefeated in the UFC since losing to 'The Nigerian Nightmare'.
While Covington is easily the bigger name and fought one of the best title fights in the division's history against Usman in December 2019, he has competed only once in the UFC since.
His last fight was a fifth-round TKO win over former champion Tyron Woodley in September 2020.
Meanwhile, Leon Edwards has gone on to defeat notable fighters like Rafael dos Anjos, Donald Cerrone and, most recently, Nate Diaz at UFC 263 on June 12.
A dominant win over Diaz would probably have guaranteed a title shot for Edwards. But the relatively competitive nature of the fight has failed to impress the champ.
UFC president Dana White has shown a strong inclination towards Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington 2 for the next title fight. However, the champ has not accepted the fight yet.
Matt Brown will return to competition against Dhiego Lima on June 19
Matt Brown (22-18 MMA, 15-12 UFC) will make his return to competition against Dhiego Lima (15-8 MMA, 6-7 UFC) this weekend.
Brown last competed against fellow veteran fighter Carlos Condit at UFC on ABC 1 in January. He lost the back-and-forth contest via a unanimous decision.
Matt Brown's opponent, Dhiego Lima, last competed against ninth-ranked Belal Muhammad in February, losing the fight via a unanimous decision.
Brown and Lima will compete on the undercard of the UFC Vegas 29 event, which is headlined by featherweight contenders Chan Sung Jung and Dan Ige.
Scheduled to take place on June 19, the event will take place at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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