Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman make weight for their UFC 286 welterweight title fight.

Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman both weighed in at 170 pounds for their welterweight title fight at UFC 286 on Saturday in London.

Edwards, 31, is making his first title defense since shocking Nigerian-American Usman in August.

Edwards, 35, became the first British UFC champion since Michael Bisping in 2016.

The event is the first numbered event in the United Kingdom since UFC 204 in 2017, when Bisping defeated Dan Henderson.

The pair first met in 2015, with Usman winning by decision, completing a trilogy that has been billed as the biggest MMA fight to ever take place on British soil.

They were animated during the fights, with UFC president Dana White having to step in between them.

“I’m really excited to be here tomorrow and put on a show for you guys, to do another headshot and take him out,” Edwards said.

Usman plans to make five defenses of the belt he has held for more than three years beginning in 2019.

“He’s talking now, so we’re going to talk in that octagon tomorrow night,” Usman said.

Except for Canada’s Malcolm Gordon, who was 3.5lb over the flyweight limit for his fight with Britain’s Jake Hadley, all of the other fighters made weight.

The co-main event pits American Justin Gaethje against Azerbaijan’s Rafael Fiziev, while a number of British fighters, including Jack Shore, Muhammad Mokaev, Joanne Wood, Lerone Murphy, and others, compete on the undercard.

With Usman and Edwards both making weight, American Colby Covington weighed in as a backup for the main event but will not fight.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *