Dana White has announced Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman 3 is officially taking place at UFC 286 in London.
Seven months after becoming the UFC welterweight champion, ‘Rocky’ will defend his title against Usman in an immediate rematch. The former champion was a minute away from retaining the welterweight crown before Edwards shocked the MMA world with a head kick KO.
‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ had hand surgery after the fight, creating concerns about his return date. On March 18, the UFC is going to the O2 Arena in London, and Edwards was expected to headline the event. Luckily, Usman will be healthy and available, securing his immediate rematch for the welterweight title.
During the UFC Vegas 67 post-fight press conference, White made the announcement by saying:
“Leon Edwards and [Kamaru] Usman is finalized.”
The feel-good story of Edwards becoming a UFC champion will be capped off with a title defense in front of his home crowd. More importantly, ‘Rocky’ has an opportunity to end the three-fight series against Usman by winning at UFC 286. In 2015, Usman and Edwards were both getting their feet wet in the UFC. They were matched up at UFC on FOX 17, and ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ won by unanimous decision. History seemed to be repeating itself before ‘Rocky’ changed his life forever.
The announcements keep on coming: @Leon_EdwardsMMA puts his WW title on the line against @Usman84kg in the #UFC286 main event, with @Justin_Gaethje taking on @RafaelFiziev in the co-main!
[ Get your tickets early at https://t.co/C6eU8mzrqg 🎟 ] pic.twitter.com/BADUYhFIdc
— UFC (@ufc) January 15, 2023
Dana White reveals Justin Gaethje vs. Rafael Fiziev will be the co-main event for UFC 286
Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman wasn’t the only UFC 286 fight announced by Dana White. The co-main event for March 18 is a lightweight banger between number three-ranked Justin Gaethje and number six-ranked Rafael Fiziev. White had this to say during the UFC Vegas 67 media interview:
“[Justin] Gaethje and [Rafael] Fiziev are the co-main event for that fight in London… Yes, done. Both of those fights are done.”
Gaethje vs. Fiziev quickly materialized after rumors started to spread earlier this week. ‘The Highlight’ is coming off a loss to Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title in May. Meanwhile, ‘Ataman’ made a statement by defeating Rafael dos Anjos in July.
The 155-pound striker’s delight has been added to the UFC 286 main card, joining Edwards vs. Usman, Marvin Vettori vs. Roman Dolidze, and Gunnar Nelson vs. Daniel Rodriguez.
The welterweight trilogy between Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman is set for UFC 286, Dana White announced on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/lfuWbFicbU
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 15, 2023
