Dana White informed ESPN today that once again, the Edwards vs Chimaev fight is off! For the third time now, COVID-19 is robbing the world of this stellar matchup!
First, it was scheduled for December 19th and Leon Edwards withdrew due to COVID. The fight was rescheduled to January 20th and this time it was surging prospect Khamzat Chimaev who withdrew for the same reason. Once again, the fight was rescheduled and this time it’s post-COVID-19 complications/effects that are keeping Chimaev out of the fight.
Edwards vs Chimaev Off, So What’s Next for Edwards?
According to Brett Okamoto: “White told ESPN the promotion will have to move on from the matchup while Chimaev recovers. Edwards is expected to book a different opponent and potentially move to a new date.”
Leon Edwards last fought in July of 2019, at UFC on ESPN 4. Where he battled Rafael Dos Anjos to a decision victory. Making it 8 wins in a row for Edwards, in an impressive streak that’s seen wins over the likes of Gunnar Nelson, Donald Cerrone and Vicente Luque.
Edwards vs Chimaev first came to fruition after Khamzat burst onto the scene like a wild man in 2020 at the first UFC Fight Island Events. Submitting John Philips, then turning around 10 days later to TKO Rhys McKee. After that, he knocked out Gerald Meerschaert in 17 seconds that September.
At the time, Leon was in a bad place with the UFC for turning down fights and was stripped of his #3 rank in the Welterweight division. After signing to fight Khamzat though, the UFC restored his ranking, and as of the writing of this article that’s where it stands to this day. Dana White has not announced Leon Edwards’ next opponent, but names like Michael Chiesa, Nate Diaz, Stephen Thompson, and Jorge Masvidal could make sense! Is the Edwards vs Chimaev fight cursed? I don’t think so, but I would love to hear your opinion in the comments!
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