Leon Edwards says Kamaru Usman trilogy has to happen in his backyard: 'It's on my terms now'

UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards publicly claimed that Kamaru Usman's trilogy showdown with him must take place in the United Kingdom. He also gave a possible timescale for the much-awaited fight. Khamzat Chimaev missing the weight for the UFC 279 main event against Nate Diaz, has really affected the reputation that he built over the years. Now that Borz is out of the picture for the welterweight title fight, the trilogy bout between the champion Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman is imminent.

When Edwards defeated Kamaru Usman to win the welterweight championship at UFC 278, he surprised the MMA community. The Nigerian Nightmare, who had a solid opening round for the Brit, found his rhythm in the following three rounds and dominated. Usman was left out flat after receiving a wonderfully timed head kick from "Rocky" four minutes into the fifth round, while the score was still in favor of the Nigerian.

UFC president Dana White has confessed that now that Edwards is the champion, he sees a fantastic opportunity in the U.K although he is against the thought of stadium events. The Birmingham native will exert all necessary effort to make that possible.

In a recent interview with Troopz on the Back Again podcast, the 31-year-old Edwards said:

“It’s in Wembley, bro,”

“We’re going back to the sites. I’m not going over (to the U.S.) now. I did my job. I went to over to (Usman’s) backyard and took it off him, so now he has to come to my backyard. I’m not going over there again. It’s on my terms now. He has to come over here.”

The UFC often visits the UK in March, so Edwards anticipates the title fight to actually happen then. The champion is currently aware of two potential sites.

“They said early next year, March-ish,” Edwards said. “Early next year over here in the U.K. – the stadium show. I think they’re coming to Wembley because it’s probably cold in March. It might be Cardiff (in Wales).”

After Michael Bisping, Leon Edwards became the second British UFC champion in history. Like Bisping did when he defended the middleweight belt against Dan Henderson, he now requests the same opportunity to defend the title at home.