Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman have heated back and forth at UFC 286 press conference (Video)
UFC welterweights Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman had a heated back-and-forth earlier today.
‘Rocky’ and ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ are slated to headline UFC 286 in London this Saturday. The bout will be the third time that they’ve clashed, and the first since their historic welterweight title fight last August. In that outing, Usman appeared to be on his way to a second unanimous decision win over Edwards.
Instead, the British welterweight got an impassioned speech from his corner before the last round and fought like it. Edwards landed a devastating head kick that put the champion out cold, handing him gold in the process. With that, Usman’s lengthy title reign was over, and he had been handed his first loss in the UFC.
With all that in mind, there’s a lot of intensity heading into this Saturday’s trilogy bout. Earlier today, the two welterweights interacted for the first time in fight week, as they attended the UFC 286 pre-fight press conference.
During the presser, Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman had a heated back and forth. The latter mocked the champion for his coaches’ speech in-between rounds. Usman even mimicked the coach’s British accent during the back-and-forth with Edwards.
It's officially popping off between our main event! 👀 #UFC286 pic.twitter.com/q7d18CBT1x
— UFC (@ufc) March 16, 2023
Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman’s exchange
“What’s the excuse for the first fight?” Kamaru Usman stated to Leon Edwards.
“What’s the excuse for the f*cking head kick you got? The f*ck?” He answered.
“I dropped my hands. There’s no excuse,” Usman replied. “Beautiful technique, my hand came down and you landed it. What was your excuse for the three rounds before it getting your head beat in? Your coach had to beg you! ‘Come on Rock! You’re getting bullied, son! You let him bully you in the first fight and you’re letting him bully you again! Don’t let him bully you son! Get your head out of your ass, Rock, he’s bullying you son!’”
“You held me against the cage!” Edwards answered. “I left unscathed, not one f*cking mark on my face. All landed on the gloves, you behave yourself. Behave yourself… That boy is concussed, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
What do you make of this exchange? Are you excited about Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman 3? Sound off in the comment section below PENN Nation!
