Leon Edwards Wants To Defend Title Against Conor McGregor Later This Year

Leon Edwards will defend his welterweight title against Belal Muhammad in the main event of UFC 304 in Manchester, England in July, but he’s already looking to what might lie beyond that by calling for a blockbuster showdown with Conor McGregor later in the year.

“That would be good – 100 percent. Why not?” Edwards said on The MMA Hour regarding a fight with McGregor. “Let’s give him the opportunity to become a three-division world champion, give me the opportunity to take out a guy like Conor McGregor. New York? That would be perfect.

“That is the fight. He goes out there and takes out Michael, I take out ‘No One Remembers His Name,’ and we’ll go from there. We’ll go to New York, MSG. Let’s go. That’s the fight, I feel. You know, two of us have business to take care of. That’s the fight that needs to happen. It should happen.”

And Edwards is confident that despite his long layoff McGregor will still have enough in the locker to get that big win over Michael Chandler first.

“I think he beats him,” Edwards said. “If you watch them stylistically, I feel like Conor is a very sharp shooter, like counter shooter, and Chandler plays off his aggression. He likes to entertain the crowd, try to scrap. He’s too small, as well. It’s going to be a good fight, but I’m favoring Conor.”

Ross Cole
Ross launched MMA Insight (previously FightOfTheNight.com) in 2009 as a way to channel his passion for the sport of mixed martial arts. He's since penned countless news stories and live fight reports along with dozens of feature articles as the lead writer for the site, reaching millions of fans in the process.