If you’ve been watching the UFC lately, you’ve probably seen Leon Edwards. He’s an English professional mixed martial artist who competes in the welterweight division. In fact, he’s currently the UFC welterweight champion.
MMA career
One of the biggest stars of the welterweight division, Leon Edwards has won 10 of his 15 UFC fights. In his UFC debut, he defeated Damian Zlotnicki by technical knockout in the first round. He has also won a pair of fights against Rafael Dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone.
When Edwards was eight, his parents moved to Birmingham, England. His mother signed him up for a mixed martial arts club. However, his father was shot dead in a nightclub.
When Edwards was nine, his family moved to a one-room wooden shack in the high-crime neighborhood of Aston. By the time he was 17, he began training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
The following year, his mother encouraged him to train in MMA. As a result, he began to improve. At eight months into training, he made his MMA debut.
Edwards is a talented kicker who is also a strong defensive fighter. He is very difficult to take down. Using a combination of a wide stance and taking the back, Edwards stymies his opponent’s combinations. Often, he will also push the pace in close fights.
Wrestling career
The current UFC welterweight champion, Leon Edwards, has a pretty unique fighting style. He has a good sense of when to throw down, and he’s also very good at clinch work.
His ability to land a rear-naked choke is a great example of this. That’s not to say that he hasn’t gotten a lot of takedowns, as he has racked up fifty in the UFC.
While he’s had a couple of notable losses, such as to Kamaru Usman, his career has been filled with plenty of wins. Against the likes of Seth Baczynski, Bryan Barberena, and Donald Cerrone, he’s demonstrated that he’s a very tough opponent.
When he entered the UFC, Edwards was considered the best English athlete on the roster. Upon joining, he received a hefty sponsorship package from Reebok and an additional $2,500 as show money.
Edwards has also won two of his three starts in the UFC. One of his victories was the impressive one-second knockout of Peter Sobotta in the third round.
UFC career
The British-Jamaican fighter Leon “The Lightening” Edwards has been a force in the UFC welterweight division. He is a talented striker and a technical fighter. His record of 19-3 is impressive and he has never lost a fight in his UFC career.
Despite his short stint in the UFC, Leon has won all of his fights. In fact, he has defeated both Nate Diaz and Vicente Luque in his career.
Edwards has earned millions of dollars over the course of his UFC career. This includes the money he has made from his appearances and the bonuses he has received. For example, the British fighter earned a total of $231,000 for his win at UFC 263.
Edwards has also earned a lot of money from his endorsements. Among others, he has earned $20,000 a year from Reebok and Monster Energy. As a result of his UFC earnings, Edwards’ net worth is estimated at $4 million.
Although his career has been relatively brief, the British-Jamaican fighter has managed to secure a solid contract with the UFC. He earns $300,000 annually from the organization and receives a percentage of pay-per-view revenue.
Notable fights
In his fifteen-fight UFC career, Leon Edwards has a record of twelve wins and one no-contest. He is the current UFC welterweight champion, and will make his first title defense in March.
The 28-year-old mixed martial artist is originally from Kingston, Jamaica. His family moved to England when he was nine. From there, he went to a MMA gym to learn the art of mixed martial arts. During his time training, he was encouraged by his mother to pursue a career in the sport.
During his training, he started training two to three times a day. After a few months, he was in the sport full-time. As an amateur, he was eight months into his training when he was faced with his first professional fight.
Before his UFC debut, Edwards had an 8-1-0 career. His first opponent was Carl Booth. Following his victory, Edwards trained with Team Renegade in Birmingham, UK. During his time at the gym, he also trained younger fighters.
