It looked as though Kamru Usman was well on his way to his sixth straight UFC Welterweight Championship title defense in Salt Lake City at UFC 278. The Nigerian Nightmare held a seemingly unassailable 48-46 lead on all three cards as he entered the fifth round of his bout with Britain’s Leon Edwards. But just as commentators Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier were writing the Birmingham native’s obituary, it happened. With the feint of a left hand followed by a left high kick from the gods, the champion lay stricken on the canvas and ‘Rocky’ had done the unthinkable. OddsChecker, which compares odds from online bookmakers as well as providing free offers on UFC matchups, had made the challenger a huge underdog heading into his first championship fight. But with just 56 seconds remaining of the five-round affair, Edwards had wrestled the championship from the pound-for-pound king.
Now the question that comes is, what’s next for the newest champion in the company? The Jamaican-born Brit has taken on all comers throughout his UFC career, and he will have to do the same and more now that he is champion. But who are the contenders to face him in his first defence, which could be at the 90,000 capacity Wembley Stadium?
The winner of Khamzat vs Diaz
The next UFC pay-per-view event is headlined by another pair of welterweights, Khamzat Chimeav and Nate Diaz. The clash is one of the most anticipated in recent memory. Chechan-born Swede Chimaev is a heavy favourite heading into the bout and why wouldn’t he be? He has decimated all that have stood before him.
But UFC 279 will represent his first time in a five-round fight under the bright lights of the main event. Nate Diaz, now 37 years of age, has been there and done it all before. Fans the world over are rallying around the Stockton, California native hoping that he can once again shock the world. And if he does, he will put himself at the front of the queue to clash with the champ.
Kamaru Usman
The expected route for Dana White and his UFC matchmakers to take is an immediate rematch with Kamaru Usman. In the build-up to his recent defeat, White was saying how the Nigerian Nightmare should be involved in the discussion regarding who is the greatest of all time. In order for Usman to once again be considered in that conversation, he must vanquish the ghost of Edwards.
Jorge Masvidal
A potential x-factor in the list of challengers is Jorge Masvidal. ‘Gamebred’ and Edwards have previous after the Florida-native hit Rocky with a ‘three-piece and a soda’ following his victory over Darren Till in London back in 2019. One stumbling block, however, is that Masvidal has lost his last three fights – two of which were to Usman – so this route is by far the least expected.
