Top welterweight blames Leon Edwards's corner for stunning defeat at UFC London
03/23/2025 06:48 PM
UFC welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley harshly criticized Leon Edwards’s team after UFC London.
Former UFC titleholder Leon Edwards suffered from the jaws of defeat in consecutive fights for the first time in his career after UFC London. After an encouraging start against Sean Brady, Edwards was smothered on the ground in Round 4, leading to a guillotine choke that secured Brady’s victory.
It was another disappointing setback for Edwards after falling to Belal Muhammad at UFC 304 last July. Before that, he successfully defended the welterweight title against Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington.
Edwards’s corner, and particularly his longtime coach Dave Lovell, were major players in his rise to the UFC welterweight title. But after back-to-back setbacks, a top contender believes Edwards’s corner let him down at UFC London.
Leon Edwards’s corner ‘trashed’ by Joaquin Buckley after UFC London
Lovell infamously fired up Edwards as he prepared for Round 5 of his come-from-behind knockout win over Usman at UFC 278. After being down on the judges’ scorecards entering the final round, and with about a minute left in the action, Edwards landed a head kick to Usman’s head to win the UFC welterweight championship.
A visibly dejected Edwards entering Round 5 might’ve not been able to rally late to beat Usman without his fired-up corner behind him. But as Joaquin Buckley watched Edwards fall short at UFC London, Buckley believes there were too many voices in between rounds that made it overwhelming for Edwards to get the advice he needed.
In a recent post to X, Buckley scolded Edwards’s corner after UFC London.
“Leon corner is trash to many people talking and not saying s— important,” Buckley posted.
Buckley is a surging welterweight contender who could potentially face Brady next after UFC London. Muhammad and Jack Della Maddalena will square off for the title in the UFC 315 headliner in May.
Michael Bisping shared a potential next opponent for Leon Edwards after UFC London
In terms of what’s next for Edwards after UFC London, Michael Bisping presented an intriguing option for his next opponent to get back into the welterweight title mix. Edwards and Ian Machado Garry were teammates earlier in their careers, and with Garry currently not booked at present, he could make sense for Edwards’s next fight.
Garry hasn’t fought since a loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov at UFC 310 in December. Before that, he was unbeaten in his professional career with recent wins over Michael ‘Venom’ Page and Geoff Neal.
But the bad blood between Edwards and Brady didn’t go away after UFC London. Brady has repeatedly mocked Edwards on social media since the fight, including his imitation of Edwards’s ‘headshot dead’ moniker.
Edwards’s defeat wasn’t the only surprise headline from UFC London. Molly McCann retired after a loss to Alexia Thainara, to the heartbreak of longtime teammate Paddy Pimblett.
As for Edwards, he has several things to consider after another disappointing performance in the Octagon, including a potential corner shake-up.
