UFC confirmation that former welterweight champion, Tyrone “The Chosen One” Woodley (19-4-1) will face English welterweight Leon “Rocky” Edwards (18-3) in the main event of UFC FIGHT NIGHT® LONDON on Saturday, March 21, at The O2 Arena, London has pleased fans immeasurably.
The much anticipated bout will see homegrown fighter Edwards headline the prestigious London event for the first time as he aims to extend his eight-fight winning streak following high-profile victories over Rafael dos Anjos, Gunnar “Gunni” Nelson and Conor McGregor’s UFC 246 opponent Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in his previous three UFC outings.
His American opponent Woodley will undoubtedly prove stiff opposition having won nine of his 13 bouts in the UFC and will travel to London looking to re-establish his prowess following his welterweight title defeat to Kamaru “The Nigerian Nightmare” Usman in March 2019 in Las Vegas.
Commenting on the fight, Edwards said: “Last year I was the co-main event in London and was delighted to get a great win in front of my home crowd, but it will be a real honour to be at the top of the card and finally headline at The O2 for the first time.
“I’ve believe that I’ve truly earnt the right to be top of the billing with my recent wins and I’m looking forward to performing at my very best and giving the fans what they want.”
Commenting on the highly anticipated matchup, UFC president Dana White said: “This was absolutely the fight to make – we’ve been working on this for a while. Edwards is an up and coming stud and is getting his opportunity to fight the number one guy in the world and former champion, Tyrone Woodley. For Woodley, this is a fight where he is being challenged by a young, rising star who is trying to take over his number one spot. Can Woodley stay on top?”
Edwards joins a number of other British athletes fighting on the UFC FIGHT NIGHT® LONDON card, including Darren “The Dentist” Stewart, Paul “Bearjew” Craig and Molly “Meatball” McCann.
Confirmed bouts on the card are as follows:
- Middleweight bout: Darren Stewart vs Marvin Vettori
- Light heavyweight bout: Paul Craig vs Ryan Spann
- Featherweight bout: Lerone Murphy vs Gabriel Benitez
- Flyweight bout: Molly McCann vs Ashlee Evans-Smith
- Middleweight bout: John Phillips vs Duso Todorovic
- Heavyweight bout: Tom Aspinall vs Raphael Pessoa Nunes
Fans are advised to register their interest via ufc.com/London to gain early access to tickets, and to follow @UFCEurope on Twitter for all the latest updates.
Tickets to UFC FIGHT NIGHT® LONDON go on general sale at 10am Friday, January 31, via AXS and Ticketmaster. Fight Club members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets early at 9:00am GMT on Wednesday, January 29 whilst those who registered their interest early in this event will gain priority access at 10:00am GMT on Thursday, January 30.