Leon Edwards Defeats Kamaru Usman by Majority Decision at UFC 286

The word "fluke" and Leon Edwards can't be thrown around anymore. Rocky retained his UFC welterweight championship and earned legitimacy with a majority decision win over Kamaru Usman in the main event of UFC 286 from the O2 Arena in London, England, on Saturday.

The Brit utilized superior technical striking, distance management and wrestling defense to outpoint Usman in their third fight to take the series lead and retain his belt.

Edwards benefitted from a raucous hometown crowd cheering him on to the massive win:

The crowd helped Edwards get off to a strong start. Usman stalked him down, but he kept his cool and fired off a notable body kick and fended off a takedown attempt from his opponent.

The action picked up in the second round. Edwards landed a knee that seemed to have rocked Usman, but The Nigerian Nightmare responded with a massive right hand that he parlayed into a takedown with some serious ground-and-pound.

It was a tough round to score.

Controversy struck in Round 3. Herb Dean warned Leon Edwards about grabbing the fence in the first round and caught him doing it again in the third round. Since he couldn't re-establish position by rule he decided to deduct a point:

The fouls for Edwards didn't stop there. He connected on a low blow kick later in the round leaving Usman visibly frustrated.

Edwards got back on track in the fourth round. He was able to keep Usman at bay and even when he was taken down he got right back to the feet to set up a fifth and final round.

Edwards came into the fight as the rare underdog champion because of the nature of their second fight. The champ was losing to Usman going into the fifth and final round before Edwards uncorked a picture-perfect head kick that ended Usman's title reign.

It was a great moment, but one that simply set up an immediate rematch.

Now, Edwards can put the rivalry behind him as a proven champion. Usman got a lot of credit for being a dominant champ, but Edwards hasn't lost since 2015 when the two first fought and The Nigerian Nightmare took a unanimous decision.

Since then, Edwards has continually proven himself as a dangerous mixed martial artist with an 11-fight win streak that includes two victories over Usman and wins over Nate Diaz and Rafael dos Anjos.

In other words, it's time to start giving Edwards his due, and he could be in line for another massive fight in the not-so-distant future.

Conor McGregor is slated to make his return to the UFC, and he has the welterweight title on his mind.

McGregor is slated to fight Michael Chandler after a stint as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter. The Notorious has said the fight will be at welterweight, where he said on The MMA Hour he would like a title shot with a win.

"As the king, I welcome all challengers," Edwards told media when asked about McGregor. "So whoever comes can get it."

Even though McGregor has had limited success at welterweight, it's a fight that would sell tickets and pay-per-views while giving Edwards another chance to prove his ability as an elite champion.