UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards is almost here which means it’s time for our official Overtime Heroics MMA UFC 278 Staff Picks! Our writers and editors have all picked their winners for the main card, and it’s round eight of our yearlong competition to see who comes out on top! These staff picks were created prior to the UFC moving Romanov vs. Tybura to the prelims and Wu vs. Pudilova to the main card.
UFC 278 Main Card
- Light Heavyweight Bout: Tyson Pedro vs. Harry Hunsucker
- Heavyweight Bout: Marcin Tybura vs. Alexandr Romanov
- Bantamweight Bout: Jose Aldo vs. Merab Dvalishvili
- Middleweight Bout: Paulo Costa vs. Luke Rockhold
- Welterweight Title Bout: Kamaru Usman (C) vs. Leon Edwards
UFC 278 is scheduled for August 20th, 2022, at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Rematch Main Event
Nearly seven years in the making, Kamaru Usman will meet Leon Edwards in the octagon again. Their first bout happened in December of 2015; Usman defeated Edwards via. decision. Since then, Edwards has won nine straight bouts (One NC against Belal Muhammad), with two of them coming by way of finish. ‘Rocky’ last defeated Nate Diaz by decision in their five-round co-main event bout at UFC 263 in June of 2021. Edwards will look to capture UFC gold for the first time in his career by evening the score with Usman.
Usman on the other hand has won 13 straight since defeating Edwards, winning by finish four times. Usman was last seen in the octagon at UFC 268, defeating Colby Covington by decision in November of 2021. Usman will look to win his third rematch against a former opponent (Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington were the other two) by defending his title for the sixth consecutive time.
UFC 278 Staff Picks
| Writer | Usman vs. Edwards | Costa vs. Rockhold | Aldo vs. Dvalishvili | Tybura vs. Romanov | Pedro vs. Hunsucker |
| Austin Marr (20-12) | Usman | Costa | Aldo | Romanov | Pedro |
| Bruno Dacanay (15-2) | Usman | Costa | Aldo | Romanov | Pedro |
| Craig Pekios (23-9) | Usman | Costa | Dvalishvili | Romanov | Pedro |
| Jamie Harkin (22-10) | Usman | Costa | Dvalishvilli | Romanov | Pedro |
| Tom Kowalsky (12-6) | Usman | Costa | Aldo | Romanov | Pedro |
| Brent Dolan (12-10) | Edwards | Costa | Aldo | Romanov | Pedro |
| Killian Jauch (9-8) | Usman | Costa | Dvalishvili | Romanov | Pedro |
| Justin Gibbons (6-7) | Usman | Rockhold | Aldo | Romanov | Pedro |
| Jordan Wright (7-2) | Usman | Costa | Aldo | Tybura | Pedro |
Our staff is almost (Brent Dolan, cough-cough) completely riding with current champion Kamaru Usman over Leon Edwards but it’s safe to say that we would not be surprised if the title was to switch hands. How do you think our UFC 278 Staff Picks will play out? Let us know in the comments!
Featured image credit to Ultimate Fighting Championship
