Leon Edwards Beats Cowboy Cerrone:
There comes a time in a fighters career, when the punches are thrown a little slower, the timing isn’t quite there, and the reflexes are just that split second slower, Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone is now at that point.
After a long career and numerous hard battles, a seemingly irreversible decline has set in. At 35 and with just 1 win in his last 5 fights, Cerrone is entering the stage of his career where the young guns will quite willingly call him out to get his name on their record.
Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards in the main event at Singapore became the latest fighter to defeat Cerrone by way of unanimous decision, all 3 judges scored it 48-47 as did I.
Edwards started well, dominating the first 2 rounds, Cerrone clearly hampered by a cut to his right eye looked in real trouble early. Showing a good variety in his attack, knees and elbows in the clinch, brutal leg kicks to the body and his dangerous left hand finding the target at distance, Edwards looked set for a comprehensive victory.
However the work-rate dropped from the Birmingham man, I thought he started to coast a little, and rather than a case of Cerrone getting back into the fight, I felt it was more a case of Edwards letting him.
I gave Cerrone the final 2 rounds, with Edwards nicking the 3rd, but it was a fight I felt that Edwards could well blow, by simply not doing enough, giving the judges an excuse to give the last 3 rounds to the crowd favourite Cerrone.
However Edwards quite deservedly got the decision and is now on the verge of a top 10 ranking, and post fight called out the 9th ranked Jorge Masvidal.
Sadly for Cerrone he faces an uncertain future, his days as a top contender look over, and fighting on being nothing more than a gatekeeper, will be a very uncomfortable watch.
Photo Credit: Steve Flynn
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