Leon Edwards confirms UFC removed him from welterweight rankings – then says not so fast

Looks like it’s back to square one for Leon Edwards – or maybe it isn’t?

It was revealed Thursday that Edwards, the No. 3 UFC welterweight, was to be removed from the promotion’s official rankings because of inactivity. Edwards himself confirmed this to MMA reporter Cole Shelton.

Later in the day, however, Edwards issued his first comment on Twitter, saying he’s still ranked while also inviting a fight with unranked phenom Khamzat Chimaev.

I’m still in the rankings. Fuck all the inactivity, the only reason I havent fought is because all these so called top guys turned me down.

Khamzat want to fight then?

— Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards (@Leon_edwardsmma) October 22, 2020

I’m still in the rankings. F*ck all the inactivity, the only reason I havent fought is because all these so called top guys turned me down. Khamzat want to fight then?

Edwards, 29, hasn’t fought since July 2019, when he won a unanimous decision against Rafael dos Anjos in the UFC on ESPN 4 headliner. The result pushed his winning streak to eight in a row dating back to May 2016, which includes notable victories over Donald Cerrone, Vicente Luque and Gunnar Nelson.

Since the win over RDA, Edwards has struggled to find his next fight, believing he deserves a title shot, someone ranked ahead of him or a big fight to settle his feud with star Jorge Masvidal, but no takers have emerged. Edwards was called out by Stephen Thompson last month but stated publicly that he was not interested in fighting the former title challenger.

Earlier this week, UFC president Dana White was asked about Edwards’ status in an interview with BT Sport.

“I want to get Leon Edwards a fight, a good fight that means something,” White said. “We’re working on it.”

Perhaps that will be with undefeated Chimaev, who is 3-0 in the UFC and has been promised a headlining spot for his next fight.

Edwards’ last defeat came in December 2015, losing a unanimous decision to current champion Kamaru Usman.