Leon Edwards DEFENDS his welterweight title, claiming sweet victory over Colby Covington at UFC 296 following vile comments about his late father and ruining Donald Trump’s party in Las Vegas

• Leon Edwards claimed victory over Colby Covington by unanimous decision at T-Mobile Arena 
• It was a hugely meaningful title defence after American’s vile remarks about his murdered father
• DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news 

Leon Edwards responded to Colby Covington’s toxic verbal attacks on his late father in the most emphatic way, dominating the American in every facet in front of Donald Trump at UFC 296. 

This was not the happy homecoming Covington and Trump has planned, despite the thunderous reception both men were given inside the T-Mobile Arena, with Edwards taking the belt back to Birmingham after a unanimous decision win. 

It has been a hellish week for the softly spoken British star in the face of Covington trying to get under his skin by mocking his late father, who was murdered when ‘Rocky’ was 13. And Edwards admitted it had caused him to cry with fury on Thursday in the immediate aftermath. 

But he managed to compose himself incredibly well and show all the class that has led to him being undefeated for almost a decade. 

Edwards executed a leg kick-heavy game plan while negating most of Covington’s takedown attempts to tally 49-46 across all three score cards. While the fight was won soundly, it was not as exciting as fans thought following the buildup. 

Post fight, Edwards addressed how Covington commented on his late father, who was murdered when he was 13 years old. 

‘This guy used my dad’s death as entertainment,’ Edwards said while holding back tears. ‘It took a lot for me to calm down, stay focused to win this fight.’

‘He’s a good competitor. But he’s a dirty human being.’ 

Leon Edwards scored a unanimous decision over Colby Covington at UFC 296 in Las Vegas

Edwards executed a kick-heavy game plan while negating most of Covington’s takedowns

Edwards is likely to defend the title against Belal Muhamad or Shavkat Rakhmonov next

Edwards went into Saturday after winning and defending the title against former champion Kamaru Usman in his last two fights. With the win, Edwards extends his unbeaten streak to 13 fights. 

Edwards and lightweight champion Islam Makhachev are tied for the second longest active win streaks in the UFC behind Jon Jones’ 19 consecutive wins.  

Meanwhile, Covington has lost three of his last five fights. Covington received the title shot despite being inactive for nearly two years after defeating Jorge Masvidal in March 2022. 

Covington failed to capture undisputed gold for the third time after challenging Usman twice during his reign. 

The loss moves Covington to a 17-4 record while the champion Edwards improves to 22-3. 

Edwards is likely to defend the title against No 2 welterweight Belal Muhamad or No 5 Shavkat Rakhmonov. Muhamad weighed in as the backup fighter for UFC 296 while Rakhmonov scored a second round finish over veteran Stephen Thompson. 

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