UFC London preview: ‘Edwards vs. Brady’ main, co-main event predictions

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is just one day away from the upcoming UFC London mixed martial arts (MMA) event, which is set to go down tomorrow night (Sat., March 22, 2025) on ESPN+ from inside O2 Arena in London, England. UFC London features a welterweight main event between Top 5 title contenders Leon Edwards and Sean Brady, a five-round showdown with serious title implications for late 2025 and beyond.

Before we dive into the main and co-main events, which include the light heavyweight collision between Jan Blachowicz and Carlos Ulberg, check out Andrew Richardson’s “X-Factor” breakdown for the rest of the UFC London main card by clicking here. Get all the latest “Edwards vs. Brady” odds and betting props courtesy of FanDuel right here. For UFC London live results for this weekend’s fight card across the pond click here.

170 lbs.: Leon Edwards vs. Sean Brady

Leon “Rocky” EdwardsRecord: 22-4, 1 NC | Age: 33 | Betting line: +136Wins: 7 KO/TKO, 3 SUB, 12 DEC | Losses: 0 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 3 DEC, 1 DQHeight: 6’2” | Reach: 74” | Stance: SouthpawSignificant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 2.68 | Striking accuracy: 53%Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 2.37 | Striking Defense: 53%Takedown Average: 1.25 (36% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 65%Current Ranking: No. 1 | Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to Belal Muhammad

Leon Edwards is just one loss away from getting sent to the back of the 170-pound line, which sounds overly-dramatic when talking about the division’s No. 1-ranked contender who is just one fight removed from his welterweight title reign. That’s because Dana White and his UFC henchmen do not like Edwards; but then again, they’re not in love with Belal Muhammad, either, which is why matchmakers continued to keep them both “in the mix” until exhausting all other options.

Sound familiar?

It’s hard to know what Edwards will bring to the table after losing his title to Muhammad. As we saw in his first fight against Kamaru Usman, and perhaps in his performance against “Remember the Name,” Edwards appears to be easily discouraged and I can’t help but wonder what his motivation will be against another grapple-heavy bruiser in Sean Brady. On paper, Edwards appears to have the superior skillset. “Rocky” is a high-output wrestler with technical striking and he’s never been finished in 27 professional fights. More importantly, he’s already proven himself against some of the toughest outs in the division, like Colby Covington, Vicente Luque, and the aforementioned Usman.

Against Brady, Edwards will have a considerable advantage in both height and reach.

“I didn’t know he was that small,” Edwards told reporters during the UFC London media day (watch it here). “I was walking towards him and he had his back turned to me, and I looked over and was like, ‘Where the f*ck is Sean?’ Then he turned around and I was like, ‘What the hell?’ So yeah, I think he’s about 5’8, 5’9 probably. I feel like the size difference, the reach, and the strength will play a big part in the fight.”

“I think it’s pretty similar as far as the wrestling takedowns,” Edwards continued. “He’s probably got more submission threats as the Usmans and Colbys and Belal. They’re more like riding pressure kind of wrestlers. He’ll go for stuff, which will give me more space to get up basically or to re-attack. I’ve never been in a submission threat in my career. I fought better jiu-jitsu guys than him. If Belal can stop you with punches, I’m going to hurt you. Seeing the size difference, I feel like once he feels my physicality, I feel like I’ll stop him.”

Strength of competition is where Brady falls short, at least in terms of this matchup. I’m not breaking out the party hats because he decisioned a 38 year-old Gilbert Burns who dropped five or his last eight, and beating Kelvin Gastelum — who’s dropped six of his last nine — is even less impressive. I’m not trying to pile on here, but during the biggest test of his career, a UFC 280 showdown against Muhammad, Brady got stopped in the second round by an opponent with 19 fights inside the Octagon and only two knockouts.

“A lot of those guys are strictly wrestlers,” Brady told reporters during the UFC London media day (watch it here). “Like Colby’s a wrestler, Kamaru’s a wrestler. If you look at their records, none of them really have submissions. I just think I’m like a much bigger submission threat than a lot of the guys he’s fought, and I think I’m the biggest submission threat in the division. So, I’m a different level of grappler.”

“I’m not trying to get a title shot out of this,” Brady continued. “I’m not trying to rush it. That’s what I did before in my career. I went into the Belal fight pushing for it so hard and it turned out that wasn’t the night for me. So, I’m going to go out there, I’m going to do my job, get my hand raised by any means necessary, and then wherever I go from there, I go.”

Brady does not have the kind of finishing power to keep Edwards honest during their exchanges and will have to rely on his ability to grind down the hometown hero and mug-and-slug his way to victory. “Remember the Name” drew up the blueprint at UFC 304 and it’s up to Brady to follow it.

I’m not sure that’s something he can maintain across five rounds of action.

Prediction: Edwards def. Brady by decision

205 lbs.: Jan Błachowicz vs. Carlos Ulberg

Carlos “Black Jag” UlbergRecord: 11-1 | Age: 34 | Betting line: -265Wins: 7 KO/TKO, 1 SUB, 3 DEC | Losses: 1 KO/TKO, 0 SUB, 0 DECHeight: 6’4“ | Reach: 77” | Stance: OrthodoxSignificant Strikes Landed Per Minute: 7.20 | Striking accuracy: 56%Strikes Absorbed Per Minute: 4.27 | Striking Defense: 50%Takedown Average: 0.72 (75% accuracy) | Takedown Defense: 83%Current Ranking: No. 6 | Last fight: Unanimous decision victory over Volkan Oezdemir

Jan Błachowicz is a former light heavyweight champion and an absolute nightmare for anyone competing at 205 pounds. Former division titleholder, Alex Pereira, barely scraped by with a split decision win and current light heavyweight kingpin, Magomed Ankalaev, had to settle for a draw. Blachowicz has knockout power, good wrestling, and championship cardio. And even though we haven’t seen it for several years, Blachowicz has an underrated ground game with submission wins by arm-triangle choke, armbar, and kimura, just to name a few.

Unfortunately, the former KSW headliner turned 42 just a few weeks back and is coming off reconstructive surgery on his shoulder, which has kept him out of action for nearly two years. To put that timeline into perspective, Pereira competed in five separate title fights since Blachowicz has been gone. We don’t yet know what version of the power-punching Pole to expect on fight night, but even if his shoulder operates as well as it did on day one, he’s still testing the limits of Father Time.

“He’s a kickboxer, very good kickboxer,” Blachowicz told reporters during the UFC London media day (watch it here). “Good left hand, very fast, good movement on the feet, but I’ve got very big experience, and I feel everything inside the Octagon. So, it’s another fighter I have to beat, and that’s it. All respect to him. I have to be careful all the time, but I feel everything. I also have some questions, and I’m going to have answers Saturday, and I’m waiting for that. In my head, visualization training is third-round KO.”

“I see keys in standup, also in wrestling, also in jiu-jitsu,” Blachowicz continued. “So, I just have to find a hole in the fight and use it. I’m ready for that. With all respect to him, he’s a good kickboxer, good fighter, but I think I’m better in every part of the fight. Even experience is on my side. He’s younger. For sure, this is on his side, but I’ve still got the fire inside me, and you’re going to see it on Saturday.”

Carlos Ulberg has been a nice surprise in the light heavyweight division and has quietly worked his way up to No. 6 in the 185-pound rankings. “Black Jag” made a name for himself by starching Bruno Oliveira on Dana White’s “Contender Series” back in Nov. 2020, then got a taste of his own medicine opposite Kennedy Nzechukwu in his UFC debut. Since then, Ulberg has been unstoppable, racking up seven straight wins with five nasty finishes. Unfortunately, five of those seven opponents have since been released from the promotion because they can’t win fights, so it’s not like he’s been laying waste to the upper half of the division. In fact, his only win over a fighter currently ranked in the Top 10 came by decision over Volkan Oezdemir as part of the UFC Macau event last November.

Blachowicz, meanwhile, has fought a murderer’s row of light heavyweights.

“When you look at it, you’ve got someone who’s on a seven-fight win streak, the most in the light heavyweight division so far,” Ulberg told reporters during the UFC London media day (watch it here). “So, very exciting, and I think everyone would be merited for a title shot after this. Jan is a very well-established and experienced fighter. We got to make sure we go in there and get the job done. That’s all that matters.”

Ulberg is no spring chicken himself, turning 35 in the fall. If he’s going to beat Blachowicz, who in my book is the more complete fighter, he’s going to need to land a Thiago Santos-like bomb that puts Blachowicz on his ass. Otherwise, expect him to be outworked, outwrestled, and otherwise shut down across all three rounds.

Prediction: Blachowicz def Ulberg by decision

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the UFC London main card predictions RIGHT HERE.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC London fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 1 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining main card balance on ESPN+ at 4 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC London news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive here. For the updated and finalized “Edwards vs. Brady” fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.

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