Jamaican Fighter To Defend Title At UFC 286

By NAN Sports Editor

News Americas, FORT LAUDERDALE, FL, Fri. March 17, 2023: A Jamaican fighter is set for UFC 286 tomorrow at The O2 Arena in London, England.

Leon Edwards will face Kamaru Usman of Nigeria in the main event for the welterweight title rematch. Edwards is the welterweight champion – 20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) while Usman is 20-2 MMA, 15-1 UFC)

Usman had little issue with Edwards for nearly 25 minutes when they fought this past August, but Edwards pulled off a stunning late head-kick knockout to take the title.

A professional competitor since 2011, Edwards formerly competed for BAMMA, where he was the BAMMA Welterweight Champion. As of March 7, 2023, he is #4 in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings.

Edwards was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and lived with his parents and his brother in a one-room house. Growing up, he was surrounded by crime, and his father was involved in what he describes as “questionable activities.”

Edwards moved to the Aston area of Birmingham, England at age nine, and his father was shot and killed in a nightclub in London when Edwards was thirteen. He was then involved in criminal activity such as drug dealing, street fighting, and knife possession along with his social circle, but was able to get out of his lifestyle at age 17, when his mother got him to join an MMA club.