UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards will finally step back into the cage to face Belal Muhammad in the main event of Saturday’s Fight Night in Las Vegas.
Edwards has not fought since July 20, 2019, more than 19 months ago. The layoff has been due to myriad reasons, including COVID-19 lockdowns, canceled events and testing positive for coronavirus.
ESPN ranks Edwards No. 4 in the world at welterweight. UFC president Dana White said this week that if Edwards beats Muhammad he would be “100%” in line for a title shot.
Edwards (18-3) has won eight straight fights. His only loss in the past seven years came against current welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in 2015. Edwards, a 29-year-old Jamaica native who fights out of Birmingham, owns victories over former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Vicente Luque.
Muhammad (18-3) is on a four-fight winning streak. The Chicago native is coming off a unanimous decision win over Dhiego Lima last month and took this bout on three weeks’ notice after Khamzat Chimaev, Edwards’ original opponent, withdrew due to lingering COVID health complications. Muhammad, 32, has won eight of nine overall and sports a 9-3 UFC record.
In the co-main event, Misha Cirkunov takes on Ryan Spann in a light heavyweight contender battle. The exciting Cirkunov (15-5) has never been to decision in his six-year UFC career. Spann (18-6) had an eight-fight winning streak snapped in his last bout, a loss to Johnny Walker in September.
Also on the card, Dan Ige meets Gavin Tucker in a clash of featherweights, Matheus Nicolau returns to the UFC against former Rizin champ Manel Kape in a flyweight battle, and Angela Hill and Ashley Yoder meet in a women’s strawweight rematch.
Marc Raimondi, Brett Okamoto and Jeff Wagenheim recap all the action in Las Vegas. You can also watch UFC Fight Night on ESPN+.
Fight in progress:
Women’s flyweight: Cortney Casey (9-8, 5-7 UFC, +125) vs. JJ Aldrich (8-4, 4-3 UFC, -150)
Results:
Strawweight: Jinh Yu Frey (10-6, 1-2 UFC) defeats Gloria de Paula (5-3, 0-1 UFC) by unanimous decision
Each woman showed off what she does best. Frey won the fight by doing it for two rounds and limiting de Paula to just one.
Frey, a 35-year-old former Invicta FC atomweight champion from Arlington, Texas, spent nearly the entirety of Rounds 1 and 3 in controlling positions on the canvas, enabling her to secure her first UFC victory and end a two-fight losing streak.
If round 5 last week was 10-8 , then Jihn Yu Frey should have 2 10-8 rounds
— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) March 13, 2021
Frey got a takedown a minute into the fight, taking advantage of a muay thai clinch by de Paula to take the Brazilian to the canvas. Frey then used a veteran’s savvy to remain in control until the horn.
But de Paula, a 25-year-old making her UFC debut, took control in the second round, using crisp, straight punches a deft footwork to keep the fight standing.
It was anyone’s fight going into the final round, and Frey seized it 30 seconds in, getting the takedown and threatening submissions for the rest of the fight.
All three judges scored the fight 29-28 for Frey, ending de Paula’s two-fight winning streak.
— Wagenheim
Welterweight: Matthew Semelsberger (8-2, 2-0 UFC) defeats Jason Witt (18-7, 1-2 UFC) by first-round KO
Semelsberger’s nickname is “Semi the Jedi” because of his last name. Maybe it should just be “Semi,” because he hits like a truck.
Semelsberger blasted Witt with a monstrous right hand in the opening seconds, countering a Witt leg kick. The punch landed to Witt’s jaw and Witt went down in a heap. Referee Chris Tongnoni came in to stop the bout, giving Semelsberger a knockout victory at just 16 seconds of the first round.
Wow what beautiful read on @SemiTheJedi and finish with that strong cross to the chin at 16sec! @ufc #UFCVegas21
— Julia Avila (@RagingPandaMMA) March 13, 2021
“I have a lot of thunder in my hands,” Semelsberger said in his postfight interview.
Semelsberger’s quick knockout was the fastest in the UFC since Walt Harris knocked out Aleksei Oleinik in 15 seconds in July 2019. The 16-second KO was the seventh fastest finish in UFC welterweight history.
Semelsberger, 28, has won both of his UFC fights now and sports a five-fight winning streak overall. The Maryland native beat Carlton Minus via unanimous decision last August in his UFC debut. He seems like someone to watch out for in the welterweight division. Witt, a 34-year-old Missouri native, has dropped two of three in the UFC.
— Raimondi
Still to come:
Welterweight: Leon Edwards (18-3, 10-2 UFC, -270) vs. Belal Muhammad (18-3, 9-3 UFC, +220)
Light heavyweight: Misha Cirkunov (15-5, 6-3 UFC, -130) vs. Ryan Spann (18-6, 4-1 UFC, +110)
Men’s featherweight: Dan Ige (14-3, 6-2 UFC, -150) vs. Gavin Tucker (13-1, 4-1 UFC, +125)
Men’s bantamweight: Jonathan Martinez (13-3, 4-2 UFC, -310) vs. Davey Grant (12-4, 3-3 UFC, +250)
Men’s flyweight: Manel Kape (15-5, 0-1 UFC, -135) vs. Matheus Nicolau (15-3-1, 3-1 UFC, +115)
Middleweight: Eryk Anders (13-5, 5-5 UFC, +155) vs. Darren Stewart (12-6 1 NC, 5-5 1 NC UFC, -180)
Strawweight: Angela Hill (12-9, 7-9 UFC, -370) vs. Ashley Yoder (8-6, 3-5 UFC, +290)
Men’s featherweight: Charles Jourdain (10-3-1, 1-2-1 UFC, -260) vs. Marcelo Rojo (16-7, 0-0 UFC, +210)
Men’s bantamweight: Rani Yahya (26-10-1 1 NC UFC, 11-4-1 1 NC UFC, -300) vs. Ray Rodriguez (16-7, 0-1 UFC, +240)
Lightweight: Nasrat Haqparast (12-3, 4-2 UFC, -400) vs. Rafa Garcia (12-0, 0-0 UFC, +310)
