((Reuters)) – American Sean Brady scored the biggest win of his career with a superb submission over ex-welterweight champion Leon Edwards to silence the crowd at London’s O2 Arena and catapult himself into contention for a shot at compatriot Belal Muhammad’s title.
Brady dominated before a guillotine choke forced Edwards to tap out at 1:39 in the fourth round. With Muhammad set to put the belt on the line against Australian Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315 in May, Brady is in pole position to meet the winner.
The 33-year-old Edwards, appearing in his first fight since losing the title to Muhammad in July last year, dealt well with the constant forward pressure from Brady in the first round but once the American took the fight to the mat the tide turned.
Brady spent the second and third rounds controlling Edwards on the ground, threatening with submissions and alternating with powerful strikes as his Jamaican-born opponent struggled to free himself.
Edwards managed to thwart a number of takedown attempts but Brady was relentless throughout and with Edwards faltering early in the fourth round the American began turning the screw.
Brady expertly mixed up his threats, hinting at an attempted shoulder lock before quickly switching focus and locking his right arm under his opponent’s chin and applying crushing pressure to force the tap.
Edwards had been due to fight Della Maddalena but he was pulled from the bout and inserted as Muhammad’s next opponent, allowing Brady to step in as a late replacement days after becoming a father.
In the co-main event, New Zealand’s Carlos Ulberg scored a unanimous decision victory over Polish former champion Jan Blachowicz in a light heavyweight bout, extending his unbeaten run to eight fights and moving closer to a tilt at the title.
(Reporting by Philip O’Connor; Editing by Ken Ferris)
