UFC star Leon Edwards finally gets next fight with Belal Muhammad expected to face him on March 13
LEON EDWARDS is expected to face Belal Muhammad in the main event of UFC Fight Night on March 13, according to reports in the US.
Brummie Edwards is Britain's top-ranked star in the promotion but has endured a horror 18 months.
He had been slated to face up-and-coming star Khamzat Chimaev three times but saw each fight cancelled as both men contracted Covid-19.
But now Edwards, 29, will get a fight on his preferred date - if not against his preferred opponent.
According to , Muhammad will step in after impressing during a four-fight win streak, which includes a decision win over Dhiego Lima last weekend.
Edwards, meanwhile, has won eight in a row and is the No3 ranked welterweight in the UFC.
However, while his record shows he is probably worthy of a title shot, Edwards' last fight came in July 2019.
The Birmingham boy said earlier this week that he was desperate for a fight on March 13 and wanted someone ranked in the top 5 - ideally Colby Covington.
UFC president Dana White also announced he was interested in making that fight.
But Covington, ranked No1 and whose last fight was a defeat to champion Kamaru Usman, made it extremely clear he was not interested in fighting Edwards.
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Covington said on : “I’m not doing charity business no more. It’s not my fault this kid hasn’t fought in two years.
"It’s not my fault this kid – there’s people from England fighting all the time in the pandemic, they’re not scared to fight.
"So, I’m not doing charity for this guy who hasn’t fought in two years. He’s irrelevant, he’s beat a bunch of bums, and I’m not doing charity.
"This isn’t charity hour, this is f***ing championship f***ing pay-per-view hour.”
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Edwards fired back: "He talks all this s*** on social media, but he doesn't want to fight.
"He makes excuses as to why he doesn't want to fight. Then step up and stop being a b****. Let's get this work."
Edwards also said earlier this week he is hoping to get a title shot before the end of the year and hit out at Jorge Masvidal and Kamaru Usman's potential rematch.