The O2 Arena absolutely erupted in frenzied celebration after Leon Edwards retained his welterweight title last night.He beat challenger Kamaru Usman at UFC 286 by majority decision to extend his impressive unbeaten streak to 12 in the first defence of his title and to officially win the trilogy between the pair.The judges scored the fight in London 48-46, 48-46, 47-47 in favour of the Briton. Edwards landed cleaner blows than Usman and exemplified poise and diligence throughout, showing why he was deserving of retaining his title. When the judges’ decision was announced, the crowd were jubilant in their celebrations of the victory.

Video: O2 Arena erupts as Leon Edwards announced the winner at UFC 286

Twitter users were eager to share their views on the fight. One said: “Usman really needs to close the chapter or something. He looks like a completely different fighter than usual. He was so slow. His striking was mediocre. His wrestling could’ve been better. His defence today was okay. Idk. He looked like something was going on.”

However, another believed that Usman was unfairly adjudged to have lost, declaring: “This UFC fight was rigged, Usman should have won.”

UFC 286: Edwards vs Usman

The bout at the O2 Arena was billed as the biggest British MMA fight in history. After shocking Usman to win the title last August, Edwards wrote his name into British folklore, becoming the second British UFC champion and the first since Michael Bisping in 2016.

Edwards’ achievement prompted the UFC to host a trilogy bout and its first numbered show in Britain since Bisping’s defence of his middleweight title against Dan Henderson in 2016. When the Brit managed to defend his title on home soil, it was no surprise that the crowd went wild.

What happened during Edwards vs Usman 3?

The early stages saw Usman pushing forward, using his jab and feinting takedowns. However, Edwards was able to use his polished kicks effectively as the round wore on, landing a particularly well-timed body kick towards the end.

Usman’s attempts to grapple throughout the fight were largely unsuccessful, with Edwards’ only nervous moment coming when he was deducted a point by referee Herb Dean for holding on to the cage to prevent a takedown by Usman. This was greeted with disdain from the active crowd, who cheered Edwards on throughout and were relentless in showing Usman that he was in enemy territory.

“He didn’t get any takedowns, I was landing cleaner shots, I took out his legs,” said Edwards.

“I couldn’t get the kick around his head. He had the perfect defence. I was trying to set it up with kicks to the body and legs.”

Following his victory, Edwards opened the door to a potential fight with former interim welterweight champion Colby Covington, but also said he might travel to Miami in April to see Jorge Masvidal’s bout with Gilbert Burns.

“That man [Covington] has sat out for two years. I might take a little trip to Miami and see what’s going on there.

“I know it was a close fight, so I knew I had to land the cleaner shots. He didn’t land many clean on me. He just had lots of pressure. Thanks to Kamaru for being a great competitor.”