Leon Edwards made a specific request to the UFC before agreeing to headline UFC London.
The Birmingham fighter is the main attraction at the UFC Fight Night 255 event at the O2 Arena on Saturday night, where he will face rising contender Sean Brady.
Credit: GETTY
Credit: GETTY
Credit: PA
This fight marks Edwards’ return to the octagon since losing his welterweight title to Belal Muhammad at UFC 304 in Manchester last July.
Edwards, 33, was defeated in the early hours of the morning as the UFC scheduled the pay-per-view event to suit the North American audience.
He clearly communicated to the UFC that he would not compete in an American time zone again on his home turf before accepting the main event slot at the O2 Arena.
During an interview on The Ariel Helwani Show, he discussed the timing for this weekend’s event: “Never again.
“The first thing [the UFC] said to me was, ‘We’re coming back to the UK in March.’ I was like, ‘OK, what time are we fighting first?’”
“They said: ‘Normal time,’ so I was like, 'Perfect, let’s do it.’”
Edwards believes the late start time significantly contributed to the end of his reign as the UK’s second UFC titleholder.
He explained: “That 4am/5am walkout was crazy. I tried my best to get into it, but I just couldn’t.
“I just feel like my reactions were slow. I could think in my head what I wanted to do and what I trained to do.
“But for some reason, my body and mind just weren’t in sync as it normally is in fights.
“I walked out at like 5am. It felt like that would warm me up and let me know: ‘You’ve to fight now!’
"Even though he got the win, it was still a close fight on my worst day. He won three rounds, I ran two rounds…Even on my worst day it was still close.”
An impressive victory over Brady could set Edwards up for a second shot at the 170lbs title, which Muhammad will defend against Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315 in May.
However, he might need another win if the undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov recovers from his injury.
