Dana White confirms Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards title rematch in London

UFC president Dana White has confirmed that Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards will face off in a trilogy bout for the welterweight title in London, England.

White made the announcement during his appearance at the UFC Vegas 67 post-fight press conference. In addition to the title fight, White also declared that a lightweight banger between Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev will serve as the co-main event for the night.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ESPN MMA (@espnmma)

Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards have fought twice inside the octagon. Their first encounter took place in December 2015 when ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ emerged victorious via unanimous decision.

After the contest, both fighters went on incredible undefeated runs in the UFC and got matched up again for UFC 278, this time with the UFC welterweight title at stake.

Usman outclassed ‘Rocky’ with his grappling skills for the majority of the bout but Edwards landed a brutal head-kick in the final minutes of the fight and captured the welterweight title.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Leon "Rocky" Edwards (@leonedwardsmma)

Since the trilogy bout will take place in London, many believe that Edwards would have a home-court advantage. But former UFC fighter Chael Sonnen believes otherwise, who stated:

“[MMA is] The only sport in the world where there is no such thing as a home-court advantage; the only sport is this one. It is not an advantage to be fighting at home. It is not an advantage to be fighting in front of your friends. It is not an advantage to carry the media and have everybody that you’ve ever told you’re a tough guy come out to see you in person… There’s going to be a lot of pressure that’s going to be removed from Kamaru Usman. It is not going to be the other way where he’s flying into enemy territory.”

Watch Sonnen discuss the topic at 2:23 in the video below:

Gilbert Burns gives his prediction for Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards 3

Former UFC title challenger Gilbert Burns believes Leon Edwards will have an edge going into the trilogy fight with Kamaru Usman.

During a recent chat with MMA Junkie, ‘Durinho’ said that, according to him, the fight will be a close affair but ‘Rocky’ will probably have an advantage in the fight.

“I think a little bit more edge for [Edwards]. Close fight, 50-50, but a little bit more edge to Leon,” he added.

Watch Burns discuss the topic at 12:37 in the video below:

Burns is currently scheduled to take on Neil Magny at UFC 283. The event will take place in Brazil and will be headlined by a title fight between Jamahal Hill and Glover Teixeira.