Knock knock! The welterweight title better watch out because Sean Brady has officially stamped his claim as the next contender after finishing former champion Leon Edwards at UFC London. ‘Rocky’ stormed in with the intent to reignite his title run, but Brady proved to be an unexpected curveball. It was pure domination from Brady, who secured a stylish fourth-round submission. As Edwards faltered in front of his home crowd, Belal Muhammad wasted no time twisting the knife, adding insult to injury as Joe Rogan couldn’t believe his eyes.

Joe Rogan witnessed Brady’s one-arm guillotine against the former welterweight champion during his Fight Companion broadcast. As Brady secured the finish over Edwards, Rogan emphasized, “Wowwwwwww, Sean fuc—- Brady! Holy shit, what a performance. What a performance! Shoutout! One of the best of all time in the division — a former champion — beats his a– and submits him.” Well, Joe Rogan might be impressed by Sean Brady but Belal Muhammad is having the time of his life.

Taking to his X handle, undisputed welterweight champion, Belal Muhammad rubbed salt on Leon Edwards’s wounds after yet another UFC London defeat. In a string of X posts, ‘Remember The Name’ made fun of Edwards for his lackluster performance, “Leon’s still on 5 am time zone.” ‘Rocky’ blamed his defeat at UFC 304 against Muhammad on not being accustomed to fighting so early. However, what excuse does he have now?

Sean Brady completely dominated Leon Edwards in both striking and wrestling. Apart from round one, Edwards had negligible control time in the remaining rounds, making him vulnerable. When the opportunity arose, Brady capitalized on the situation and secured a guillotine choke in the fourth round. As Brady secured the win for himself, Muhammad took to his X handle to ask a question, “How good is Belal Muhammad.” Why this question, you ask? Well, that’s because ‘Remember The Name’ knocked out Brady when they fought at UFC 280.

Belal Muhammad is having the time of his life but he should be worried because he now has Jack Della Maddalena, Shavkat Rakhmonov, and Sean Brady behind his UFC gold. At the Octagonal interview, when asked about his next adventure, Brady emphasized that he would fight anyone the UFC throws at him. Well, with the defeat, Leon Edwards might find it difficult to navigate in the UFC, so, what’s coming for him?

What’s next for Leon Edwards after UFC London?

Defeat is a force that can shatter a fighter to their core. Time and time again, we’ve seen champions crumble in the aftermath of a loss. Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman stand as prime examples of this, and now it seems Leon Edwards’ name has unfortunately been added to that list. So, what’s next for the former champion after UFC London? Well, we have witnessed that the UFC tests their former champions against up-and-coming contenders, and since the welterweight division is stacked at this moment, the fighter might be busy being the guard to the top 5.

Israel Adesanya was tested by Nassourdine Imavov after his back-to-back defeats against Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis. If we go by that logic then the UFC might test Leon Edwards against the likes of Jaoquin Buckley or Ian Machado Garry. It must be noted that Michael Morales and Carlos Prates are also moving up to the top 5 of the division and Leon Edwards might be the perfect fight for them.

The UFC might not let Leon Edwards leave so easily, but one thing is certain: once a champion falls from their peak, they may never return to where they once stood.