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A third encounter between Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman will be taking place at UFC 286 on Saturday. Stephen Thompson commented on the potential outcomes of the rematch, given that Edwards surprised many with a knockout in the last fight.
It is true that Usman was more dominant, but in the end, it meant nothing to him. “Well, looking back at the last fight, Usman was winning the majority of the rounds,” Thompson told Submission Radio, as quoted by mmajunkieusatoday.com “Leon got the first one.
It was amazing, because you never saw Usman getting taken down before and controlled on the ground. Leon did that. After that round, it was all Usman up until the point of he got knocked out. Now, do I think Leon could set it up again? I do.
But on paper I have Usman winning this fight, just because he was dominating the last one until he just wasn’t. And it’s harder to pull something off again for the second time. It’s gonna be very, very difficult”.
Stephen Thompson on Usman's mindset
Thompson also emphasized Kamaru Usman's mindset. He believes that defeat could have had a great impact on him and his mentality. “But on top of that, you’ve got to think where’s Usman’s mindset going into this.
Right? A guy who’s been so dominant in the UFC and getting finished like that, getting knocked out like that, does it mess that mindset up? And you kind of see, you know, his social media presence wasn’t the same as it was before.
I don’t know if that has anything to do with it, but that just sticks out to me”. Despite everything, Thompson still believes that Usman is the favorite in this match. "I think you’ve got to ask yourself, is his mindset there and is his drive still the same after the way he lost? But from the last fight and the way he was winning it, on paper I’ve got Usman winning it”.