Leon Edwards’ 2025 Title Comeback Fell Short
In November 2024, former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards said he wanted to reclaim the title by the end of 2025. The year that followed brought a difficult sequence of setbacks instead. Edwards’ results through October 2026 show how that goal unfolded. BBC Sport reported his stated target in November 2024.
The Setback That Started the Plan
Edwards lost the UFC welterweight championship to Belal Muhammad by unanimous decision at UFC 304 on July 27, 2024. Before the loss, Edwards had gone 13 fights without defeat. He hoped to move quickly back toward the belt, but his scheduled return to London in March 2025 changed when Sean Brady replaced Jack Della Maddalena as his opponent. UFC’s UFC 304 report records the decision, and its London preview describes the opponent switch.
Two More Losses in 2025
Brady submitted Edwards with a mounted guillotine at 1:39 of Round 4 on March 22, 2025. Edwards returned at UFC 322 on November 15, but Carlos Prates stopped him with a left hand at 1:28 of Round 2. That made three straight defeats since his title loss, and his comeback plan was no longer on its original timetable. The UFC athlete record lists the Brady result; UFC’s UFC 322 results document the Prates finish.
The Comeback Remains Unscheduled
Edwards has not fought since the Prates bout. Daniel Rodriguez later said he had sought a matchup with Edwards for UFC 329 in July 2026, but the bout did not materialize. In August, Jorge Masvidal named Edwards as a preferred opponent while discussing a possible UFC return; no Edwards–Masvidal fight had been announced by October 14, 2026. Sherdog reported Rodriguez’s account, and its August report covered Masvidal’s comments.
Edwards’ ambition to become a two-time champion remains the through-line of his career, but the one-year route he described in 2024 did not happen. His next confirmed fight will determine where that pursuit goes from here.
