Leon Edwards Believes Khamzat Chimaev Is ‘Overhyped’

Ahead of their UFC Vegas 17 headliner on December 19th. – perennial welterweight contender, Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards has told how he believes upcoming dance partner, Khamzat ‘Borz’ Chimaev is “overhyped“. 

Team Renegade BJJ & MMA trainee, Edwards has been out of action since July of last year, where he took his eight consecutive victory via a unanimous decision win over former lightweight champion, Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Fight Night San Antonio.

Edwards was initially slated to have featured once already this year, in the main event of UFC Fight Night London in March, opposite former champion, Tyron ‘The Chosen One’ Woodley. That high-stakes pairing was shelved, however, after the entire event was cancelled amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

While Woodley would go on to headline a UFC Vegas event against number-one contender, Gilbert ‘Durinho’ Burns, Edwards has found willing opponents few and far between in the time since the cancellation of his fight.

The Birmingham native had been continuously linked with a matchup opposite two-time championship challenger, Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson, with that bout failing to come to fruition.

The all-rounder now meets breakout star, Chimaev on December 19th. at the promotion’s final event of the year, while fan-favourite striker, Thompson is expected to feature as well, as he welcomes streaking kickboxing ace, Geoff ‘Handz of Steel’ Neal. 

Speaking with ESPN MMA reporter, Ariel Helwani ahead of his December showdown with Chimaev, Edwards explained how he believes the undefeated prospect is “overhyped” – noting the similarities in what he has achieved during his initial run in the promotion. 

“”I believe he’s (Khamzat Chimaev) overhyped,” Edwards said. “I was once 9-0 in my career, I once had an eight-second knockout in the UFC, I’ve done everything he’s done.“

Edwards was infamously involved in a rather public spat with the promotion recently, where he was removed from the official UFC welterweight rankings due to inactivity before he was swiftly reinstated after news began to circulate that he had accepted a bout agreement to meet with Chimaev.

AllStars mainstay, Chimaev finds himself in a potential welterweight title eliminator just four fights and six months deep into his Octagon stint, quite a feat. The Chechen-born wrecking machine has laid dominant waste to both John Phillips, and Rhys McKee in the space of just ten days in July, before stopping grappling ace, Gerald Meerschaert with a massive one-punch knockout inside just seventeen seconds in September.