UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards is at the pinnacle of his career, but one thing will always make him regret- not being able to put a beating on Jorge Masvidal.
I wanted to put a beating on Masvidal: Leon Edwards
The infamous backstage altercation between “Rocky” and Jorge Masvidal at UFC London 2019, with Masvidal punching Edwards several times before security intervened, appeared to have set the stage for a final showdown between the two.
Unfortunately in the end, the fight never happened, but after Edwards became the UFC welterweight champion last year, there was hope that the fight could be arranged, but nothing came of it.
Masvidal lost via unanimous decision to Gilbert Burns in the co-main event at UFC 287 and then announced his retirement from the sport, thus eliminating any chance Edwards could have for this bout.
“That’s the one that got away,” Edwards told Damon Martin of MMA Fighting. “I wanted to put a beating on him. Looking like that or whatever he looked like, even after Askren, I just wanted to put a whooping on him and that was it.”
Despite all that, Edwards believes age had already caught up to “Gamebred” as his performance against Burns revealed, and he also opined that it was a good decision for Masvidal’s part to hang up his gloves.
“I think [at UFC 287], he showed his age. He’s what, 37 or 38? He looked slow in there. He got fatigued within a round or so. I don’t think either of them looked great, him or Gilbert. Gilbert was just the better man that night, but I think it’s probably good for him to retire.”
Masvidal’s career ended on a four-fight losing streak after losing twice to Kamaru Usman in back-to-back title fights, followed by subsequent setbacks against former friend Colby Covington, as well as a loss to Burns that led to Masvidal’s retirement.
After losing in April, Masvidal admitted that he no longer felt the same after 20 years of fighting and that he knew it was time to hang up the gloves for good.
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