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Although Leon Edwards is the champion of the UFC's welterweight division, he still has one opponent on his mind.
Edwards wants to resolve his business with Jorge Masvidal in the future, which is perhaps not unusual. Since both athletes competed at a UFC event in London in March 2019, they have been at odds with one another. Following the performance, Edwards and Masvidal got into a fight backstage that became known as the "Three Piece and a Soda" incident.
In a recent appearance on The Breakfast Club, Edwards reminded viewers that the conflict with Masvidal was still ongoing.
“Not with him,” Edwards answered when asked if it’s generally cordial between all the fighters. “Not with Masvidal, that’s what it is, that’s beef. I don’t like him. We had a scuffle backstage; we threw a few shots. That was in London, my hometown.
“But they took him and moved him and hid him and he fled my country, and I haven’t seen him since. That was three years ago.”
Since then, Edwards has maintained an undefeated streak that culminated at UFC 278 with a dramatic finish of Kamaru Usman in the fifth round to win the welterweight title. Masvidal, meantime, has emerged as one of the greatest names in the business after fighting Usman twice for the welterweight title and winning a "BMF" championship belt in 2019. Regardless of whether it takes place in a legitimate match, Edwards still wants to challenge Masvidal.
“I can’t let it go,” Edwards said. “This was, like, three years ago. I have to get it back either in the octagon or on the street.”
It's uncertain that Edwards and Masvidal will fight sometime this year, despite the fact that both are open to the idea. Masvidal recently urged Edwards to "stand up to the f****** plate". After reportedly attacking Colby Covington in March, Masvidal is trying to cope with legal issues, while Edwards is anticipated to face Usman in a trilogy fight.
Usman won their first encounter in December 2015 before falling to Edwards in the rematch. Although the location of the third fight has not yet been confirmed, Edwards believes it will be at a London stadium.
“I’m excited for that,” Edwards said. “To headline in the U.K. Sixty thousand people trying to get into a stadium show. It’s going to be big. I’m excited. This is the third time around. He beat me the first time by points, and I knocked him out the second time. Now we’re going back home on my turf and my backyard.”
Things are turning out to be in favor of Jorge Masvidal. Despite being recently called out by Michael Chandler and facing Gilbert Burns in an anticipated fight at UFC Brazil, Masvidal remains on the hitlist of the newly crowned welterweight king. It would be interesting to see with whom the BMF title holder would be matched up by the UFC.