UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards will finally step back into the cage to face Belal Muhammad in the main event of Saturday’s Fight Night in Las Vegas.
Edwards has not fought since July 20, 2019, more than 19 months ago. The layoff has been due to myriad reasons, including COVID-19 lockdowns, canceled events and testing positive for coronavirus.
ESPN ranks Edwards No. 4 in the world at welterweight. UFC president Dana White said this week that if Edwards beats Muhammad he would be “100%” in line for a title shot.
Edwards (18-3) has won eight straight fights. His only loss in the past seven years came against current welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in 2015. Edwards, a 29-year-old Jamaica native who fights out of Birmingham, owns victories over former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Vicente Luque.
Muhammad (18-3) is on a four-fight winning streak. The Chicago native is coming off a unanimous decision win over Dhiego Lima last month and took this bout on three weeks’ notice after Khamzat Chimaev, Edwards’ original opponent, withdrew due to lingering COVID health complications. Muhammad, 32, has won eight of nine overall and sports a 9-3 UFC record.
In the co-main event, Misha Cirkunov takes on Ryan Spann in a light heavyweight contender battle. The exciting Cirkunov (15-5) has never been to decision in his six-year UFC career. Spann (18-6) had an eight-fight winning streak snapped in his last bout, a loss to Johnny Walker in September.
Also on the card, Dan Ige meets Gavin Tucker in a clash of featherweights, Matheus Nicolau returns to the UFC against former Rizin champ Manel Kape in a flyweight battle, and Angela Hill and Ashley Yoder meet in a women’s strawweight rematch.
Marc Raimondi, Brett Okamoto and Jeff Wagenheim recap all the action in Las Vegas. You can also watch UFC Fight Night on ESPN+.
Fight lineup:
Welterweight: Leon Edwards (18-3, 10-2 UFC, -270) vs. Belal Muhammad (18-3, 9-3 UFC, +220)
Light heavyweight: Misha Cirkunov (15-5, 6-3 UFC, -130) vs. Ryan Spann (18-6, 4-1 UFC, +110)
Men’s featherweight: Dan Ige (14-3, 6-2 UFC, -150) vs. Gavin Tucker (13-1, 4-1 UFC, +125)
Men’s bantamweight: Jonathan Martinez (13-3, 4-2 UFC, -310) vs. Davey Grant (12-4, 3-3 UFC, +250)
Men’s flyweight: Manel Kape (15-5, 0-1 UFC, -135) vs. Matheus Nicolau (15-3-1, 3-1 UFC, +115)
Middleweight: Eryk Anders (13-5, 5-5 UFC, +155) vs. Darren Stewart (12-6 1 NC, 5-5 1 NC UFC, -180)
Strawweight: Angela Hill (12-9, 7-9 UFC, -370) vs. Ashley Yoder (8-6, 3-5 UFC, +290)
Men’s featherweight: Charles Jourdain (10-3-1, 1-2-1 UFC, -260) vs. Marcelo Rojo (16-7, 0-0 UFC, +210)
Men’s bantamweight: Rani Yahya (26-10-1 1 NC UFC, 11-4-1 1 NC UFC, -300) vs. Ray Rodriguez (16-7, 0-1 UFC, +240)
Lightweight: Nasrat Haqparast (12-3, 4-2 UFC, -400) vs. Rafa Garcia (12-0, 0-0 UFC, +310)
Women’s flyweight: Cortney Casey (9-8, 5-7 UFC, +125) vs. JJ Aldrich (8-4, 4-3 UFC, -150)
Strawweight: Gloria de Paula (5-2, 0-0 UFC, -190) vs. Jinh Yu Frey (9-6, 0-2 UFC, +160)
Welterweight: Matthew Semelsberger (7-2, 1-0 UFC, -125) vs. Jason Witt (18-6, 1-1 UFC, +105)