Leon Edwards retained the belt with a unanimous decision victory over Colby Covington at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, while Buddy Pimblett became the latest UFC fighter to defeat fading powerhouse Tony Ferguson.
Leon Edwards retained his UFC welterweight title on Saturday night, defeating American Colby Covington, and rising star Paddy Pimblett also defeated octagon legend Tony Ferguson.
The atmosphere was tense at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas ahead of the main event following a brawl in the pre-match press conference between the title contenders, after Covington made a controversial remark about Edwards’ late father.
The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt (22-3), from Birmingham, showed poise and patience as he chose his positions to outmaneuver Covington (17-4), defeating the former interim champion for a unanimous decision victory.
Earlier on the main card, Pimblett (21-3) sent former UFC title challenger Ferguson (25-10) to his seventh straight defeat, proving he is a shadow of the fighter who was once touted as having the ability to take down the great Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Ferguson’s future in the UFC should be in question now as Pimblett was faster, more accurate and used his grappling skills to earn a unanimous decision in their lightweight bout.
Pimblett remains undefeated in the UFC and continues his climb up the lightweight rankings.
Edwards remains calm to extend his historic winning streak
After the press conference controversy, the expectation going into the title fight was for Edwards to come out swinging and leave himself open for a Covington counterattack. However, the 32-year-old Briton was unfazed, settling into the fight to avoid leaving himself vulnerable to a surprise knockout.
Edwards used sharp kicks to fend off his opponent and thwart any chance Covington, who entered the arena draped in an American flag and stopped to speak with former President Donald Trump before entering the octagon, had to make an impact.
Leon Edwards retained the UFC welterweight title by defeating American Colby Covington
Instead of using his strengths on his feet as a striker, Edwards chose to counter and counter whenever Covington landed knockdowns – beating the California-born wrestler at his own game.
After the fight, Edwards emotionally opened up about the impact of Covington’s comment about the Briton’s late father in the lead-up to the event.
“It took a lot for me to calm down,” he said. “I talked to my mom and my team and shut everything down.
“After the press conference, I was crying backstage because of anger.”
UFC’s Paddy Pimblett picks his 5-man squad from Liverpool and Manchester United ahead of their clash at Anfield on Sunday.
The victory means Edwards continues an unbeaten streak that stretches back to 2015, where he recorded his 13th straight win.
Covington, on the other hand, lost his third title match and will wonder if the opportunity to fight for the belt will ever come again.
Pimblett continues his UFC rise as the lackluster Ferguson flounders once again
Pimblett admitted that the Ferguson fight was a “lose-lose situation” in the bout, as Ferguson’s decline had been evident for a while, and he felt there was no way he could afford a shock defeat.
It was never going to be the case though as the popular 28-year-old, whose young family was at ringside for the first time, cruised to a dominant win.
It looked like Pimblett might end the fight early as he took down Ferguson early in the opening round and unleashed a barrage of shots on the ground – but the Orange County fighter is notoriously difficult to finish, and it proved as he somehow managed to survive the onslaught. Pimblett.
The Liverpool man was never in any danger and controlled the fight on the ground in the second and third rounds to ensure an unimaginable loss to the ‘ultimate Tony Ferguson’ did not occur.
He repeatedly landed on Ferguson’s chin early on to open up the opportunity for a big shot. Perhaps the only concern for Pimblett was his conditioning as he looked somewhat gassed in the third round.
After the fight, “The Baddy” praised Ferguson’s toughness.
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“An absolute legend,” Pimblett said of the 39-year-old. “Everyone applauds, let’s hear it for Tony Ferguson. It’s a great honor to share the cage with him.”
“A few weeks ago, I got my second degree black belt. So we started working on it. When I get the better of you, I’m like a blanket. You can’t take me off. I feel better. I’m still a little disappointed that I didn’t get the better of Tony, but he’s one of the The hardest [guys] In the world.”
Take a look at all of Paddy Pimblett’s UFC stoppages
After the Pimblett fight, unbeaten Shavkat Rakhmonov submitted Stephen Thompson for the first time in his career to put him in the mix to face Edwards next, alongside Belal Muhammad.
In the main bout, Alexandre Pantoja won 2-0 over Brandon Royval to retain the UFC flyweight title.
Sky customers can watch replays of Edwards vs Covington and Pimblett vs Ferguson – now
The electrifying UFC 296 event delivered high-octane action inside the octagon, with Leon Edwards successfully defending his championship title against a formidable challenger. In a shocking upset, rising star Paddy Pimblett secured an impressive victory over UFC legend Tony Ferguson, making a bold statement in the lightweight division. As the dust settles from the intense battles that unfolded, the WWE universe is buzzing with excitement and anticipation for what the future holds for these incredible athletes.