Leon Edwards, one of the three UFC champions hailing from the United Kingdom in the organization’s history, has expressed admiration for the impact of the first and only Irish champion to grace the Octagon.
As the current UFC welterweight champion, Edwards has etched his own historic moment in the annals of mixed martial arts. Approximately 18 months ago, he made headlines by becoming the first to defeat Kamaru Usman, securing the 170-pound title with a spectacular head-kick knockout – a feat etched in the promotion’s history.
Edwards commended McGregor, the inaugural simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history, for his substantial influence on the sport since his professional debut. Speaking on Simon Jordan’s podcast, as reported by MMA Junkie, Edwards highlighted McGregor’s role in propelling the sport into the mainstream.
“I think he’s great for the sport,” remarked Edwards. “He has definitely brought the sport forward to the casual fans. He is one of those guys that you either like him or you don’t like him, but he is who he is. What he’s achieved in the sport, you can’t take away from him.”
Edwards emphasized McGregor’s accomplishment as the first-ever two-division world champion, acknowledging that, despite his outspoken nature, McGregor is a skilled fighter who has contributed positively to the sport’s visibility.
“He did become the first ever two-division world champion. So even though he talks all that sh*t, he is actually a good fighter, as well, behind it. He definitely helped the sport. He didn’t take nothing away from it. He definitely gave more in terms of pushing it into the mainstream.”
Despite the intense media scrutiny that McGregor has faced throughout his career, Edwards stressed that his evaluation of McGregor is solely based on the competitive and self-promotional aspects of the sport, stating, “I’m judging him from the competitive part of it, the self-promotion part of it. His personal life is his own business. I couldn’t give two sh*ts about his personal life.”
