Leon Edwards to fight Nate Diaz in huge five-round showdown at UFC 262
Leon Edwards set to fight Nate Diaz in huge five-round showdown at UFC 262 with British star finally given shot at one of MMA’s biggest names
- Leon Edwards’ clash with Belal Muhammad recently finished as a no contest
- Eye poke ended the fight but British star has been given huge contest next up
- Nate Diaz remains one of the most popular fighters and biggest names in MMA
- He’s set to take on ‘Rocky’ in five-round non-title fight on May 15 in co-main event
Leon Edwards has finally been given the huge fight he craves with a massive showdown against Nate Diaz on May 15.
The British fighter is a top contender in the welterweight division but a run of dreadful luck has hampered him in securing showcase events.
But according to ESPN, ‘Rocky’ is to lock horns with one of the sport’s biggest names in Diaz.
Leon Edwards (left), pictured during no-contest against Belal Muhammad (right), has been given a massive fight against Nate Diaz in the co-main event of UFC 262
Diaz remains one of the biggest names in MMA despite not winning a fight since August 2019
Their fight is set to be the first non-title fight five-round co-main event in the organisation’s history.
It will be the second billing at UFC 262 behind Charles Oliveira vs Michael Chandler for the lightweight title.
Diaz wrote on Twitter: ‘Check me out may 15th I’ll be headlining #ufc262 in Houston Texas I’ll also have the new UFC lightweight title fight on the card I need people to know these guys are they’ve been working very hard and I can’t wait to see who gets my old (crown emoji). I’ll see u guys there.’
Diaz has been out of the cage since losing a battle for the BMF belt against Jorge Masvidal back in 2019. A doctor stopped that fight due to two nasty cuts on the Californian’s eye.
He has been biding his time for the right opportunity to return and clearly sees a chance to leapfrog Edwards to a welterweight title fight with victory.
Kamaru Usman is the dominant champion at 170-pounds but has beaten most of his top contenders.
Edwards lost to ‘the Nigerian Nightmare’ back in 2015 and has not tasted defeat since.
He was due to fight for the title last year but withdrew as there was not enough time to prepare. Then the UFC took him off the rankings, before putting him back on when he accepted a fight with fearsome rising star Khamzat Chimaev.
Edwards caught Covid-19, meaning their bout was postponed, and then postponed again when the Russian-born Swede contracted the illness himself.
An accidental eye poke scuppered Edwards’ chances of a win against Muhammad
Diaz last stepped into the octagon in November 2019 for the BMF belt against Jorge Masvidal
He was so badly affected by the virus that the third re-scheduling was also cancelled. Chimaev was replaced by Belal Muhammad in the main event and Edwards looked superb for a round before disaster struck and he accidentally poked his opponent in the eye.
Muhammad was unable to continue and the fight was called a no contest. Many wondered where Edwards could go from there but now the answer has been provided.
A win over Diaz would unequivocally raise his profile and almost guarantee a shot at the belt.
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