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SALT LAKE CITY — Leon Edwards shocked the MMA world.
With a head kick within the remaining spherical of a combat he was handily shedding, Edwards knocked out Kamaru Usman to win the UFC welterweight title in the principle occasion of UFC 278 on Saturday evening at Vivint Area.
The end got here at 4 minutes, 4 seconds of the fifth spherical. Usman was thought-about one of the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet.
Edwards snapped Usman’s 15-fight UFC successful streak, which was one off Anderson Silva’s UFC report. It was one of the crucial beautiful knockouts within the historical past of the game.
“I can not put it into phrases,” Edwards mentioned.
Usman had been dominating the combat after the primary spherical and was up 39-37 on all three judges’ scorecards getting into the fifth. However late within the fifth, Usman leaned all the way down to his proper to defend an Edwards left and Edwards caught him flush with a left head kick, sending the greater than 17,000 in attendance right into a frenzy. Usman, who was out on contact, was lower than a minute away from a sixth title protection.
The Salt Lake Metropolis followers began the evening chanting for Usman, however completed it chanting “Rocky,” Edwards’ nickname.
“Take a look at me now!” Edwards mentioned. “Take a look at me now! Pound-for-pound one!”
ESPN has Usman ranked No. 1 on its pound-for-pound listing and on high at welterweight as effectively. Coming in, ESPN had Edwards ranked No. 4 at welterweight. This was a rematch of their December 2015 combat, which Usman gained by unanimous determination.
Edwards (20-3, 1 NC) is unbeaten in 11 straight fights over practically seven years. The Jamaica-born resident of England has not misplaced because the 2015 combat with Usman. Edwards, 30, has an 12-2 (1 NC) report within the UFC.
Usman (20-2) had 5 title defenses previous to the loss Saturday. The Nigerian-born fighter, who trains out of Colorado, had been UFC welterweight champion since beating Tyron Woodley at UFC 235 in March 2019.
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