Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman has emerged as favourite to reclaim his title when he faces new champ Leon Edwards at the 02 Arena in London on March 18.
UFC fighters gave their predictions for the upcoming trilogy between Usman and Edwards in a video posted recently and ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ edged the Briton as majority of the MMA picked Usman to win.
“I think Leon Edwards is gonna take that one again. I think he is better than Usman,” Jack Maddalena said.
“I think Usman will get him again. He was beating him for 24 minutes,” Eryk Anders said.
Former light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz also picked Usman to triumph in the trilogy, saying, “Kamaru Usman. You see the fight, of course, Edwards won, congratulations to him, but four and a half rounds Usman won. Push him very hard, so I would put my money on Usman.”
For middleweight fighter, Bryan Battle, he doesn’t see Edwards winning this rematch.
“That was a magical moment, but I don’t think lightning is gonna strike twice. I think Kamaru Usman was winning that fight and I think when they fight again, he’s gonna pick up where he left off,” he said.
The results of all the votes told a bigger story as the total votes were 11 to 2 for Usman, with Maddalena and Randy Brown being the only ones to back Edwards. The betting odds are similar to the fighters’ predictions, with ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ being a sizeable favourite.
According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Usman is currently a -245 betting favourite, with Leon Edwards as a +205 underdog.
In their last fight, Usman dominated the fight before Edwards landed a stunning head kick in the final minute of the fifth round.
Edwards is riding a massive wave of momentum, and he’s going to have a lot of support in London, England.
Usman and Edwards fought for the first time in December 2015 at UFC on FOX 17. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ emerged victorious with a unanimous decision.
Similar results were expected in their second fight at UFC 278, but Edwards had different plans. The trilogy fight goes down at UFC 286 with the undisputed welterweight championship on the line.