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Stephen Thompson believes that he deserves the shot at UFC welterweight title more than Leon Edwards by the virtue of activity level in recent times.
In the second episode of the What's Up Everybody podcast hosted by the Thompson siblings, Stephen and Tony, "Wonderboy" reflected on the welterweight title picture and gave his thoughts on Leon Edwards' performance in the Belal Muhammad fight at UFC Vegas 21. Stephen Thompson stated that although Leon Edwards seemed to be winning the fight up until the eye no-contest finish, Edwards has not won a fight in almost two years. Thompson said that alone is the reason for Edwards to rematch Muhammad rather than calling for a title shot.
"I think that's the best shape I have seen Leon Edwards in... He looked calm, he had good timing. He had Belal Muhammad backing up so I had him winning the fight up until he poked Belal in the eye and he couldn't continue. So with the eye poke, there is only one thing to do and that is to run it back. I know Edwards is saying that he deserves the title next but you can't get the title after being gone for two years and then having a no-contest with a poke to the eye, come on... I know Edwards is saying 'I want the title' but you know what? I deserve the title more than you at this point," Stephen Thompson said.
Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad - What really happened?
No. 3 ranked UFC welterweight Leon Edwards [18-3 (1) MMA, 10-2 (1) UFC] fought No. 14 ranked Belal Muhammad [18-3 (1) MMA, 9-3 (1) UFC] in the main event of UFC Vegas 21. During the lead-up to the fight, UFC president Dana White announced that an impressive win over Muhammad would grant Edwards a shot at the title. However, the fight ended in a no-contest after an accidental eye poke from Edwards rendered Muhammad unable to compete in the second round.
Leon Edwards' lack of activity in recent years has been the biggest hurdle for his opportunity to fight for the UFC title, but the Brit dismissed the idea of a rematch with Belal Muhammad in the post-fight press conference and called for a title fight.
“I don’t feel I need to fight him (Belal Muhammad) again. I only fought him because all the other guys turned me down. The writing was on the wall. I was winning the fight clearly. And I don’t feel I need to fight him again. I need to move forward. I’m on an eight fight win streak. That’s the third most in the promotion’s history. It’s me, Usman and GSP. I feel like I’ve earned my way for a big fight,” Leon Edwards said.
Stephen Thompson is the only top-ranked welterweight that has not competed against champion Kamaru Usman
Former two-time title challenger Stephen Thompson is the only fighter among the top five in the welterweight division that has not competed against champion Kamaru Usman. After losing back-to-back fights against Darren Till and Anthony Pettis, Stephen Thompson bounced back with wins over young prospects Vicente Luque and Geoff Neil. Given that Usman has defeated every other top welterweight including Leon Edwards in the past, the fight against Stephen Thompson is the only fresh matchup for the champion.
