After more than a year away from the Octagon, the top contender in the welterweight division, Tyron Woodley will return to battle No. 4 ranked Leon Edwards at UFC Fight Night on March 21 in London, per ESPN.
Woodley was on an eight-fight win streak before dropping the welterweight crown in a one-sided decision to Kamaru Usman at UFC 235 in March 2019. Woodley was scheduled to step back into the cage against the man he took the belt from originally — Robbie Lawler — in June but was forced to pull out due to injury.
Edwards, the southpaw who lives and trains in England, is riding an eight-fight win streak, with statement wins over Rafael Dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone in the last year and a half. He’s been calling out Usman and fellow contender Jorge Masvidal for six months, but it appears UFC president Dana White needs to see more before awarding “Rocky” a title shot.
With the welterweight division in flux, the fighter who comes out of this bout on top could catapult directly into the next shot at Usman’s belt. Colby Covington likely won’t be ready for a return until April or May after getting his jaw broken in a loss to Usman. That only leaves Masvidal between either fighter and the title, and he seems more concerned with a super fight against Conor McGregor than trading in his BMF title for UFC gold at the time.
