Fabian Edwards wants to right the wrongs of his first contest against Jonny Eblen and claim the Bellator Middleweight title in the process.
‘The Assassin’ has his second shot at Bellator Middleweight gold on September 14, in a rematch against Johnny Eblen at the OVO Arena London.
The Birmingham man, who is also brothers with UFC Welterweight Leon Edwards, is extremely keen to avenge the loss Eblen handed him the last time out. After a competitive opening two rounds, Edwards was caught with a big right hook when sent him crashing to the mat before Eblen followed up with some big elbows and rendered him unconscious.
Heading into the rematch, the 31-year-old believes he has already felt everything Eblen has to offer and was handling it all very well and that it was an error on his part that led to the champion defeating him.
"I feel like I felt the best version of him, leading up before our first fight got stopped I felt like I handled everything that he threw at me. It was just an error on my side and that’s the sport you know what I mean? That’s the sport.
"I’ve felt him, I’ve never had a rematch before. I’ve spoken to some of the guys in the gym that have had rematches, obviously my brother had a rematch with Usman, and it’s just like you’ve felt them before. Now you know what they’re going to throw at you, you know exactly how to prepare, I’m excited for it."
In Eblen’s last contest, at PFL vs. Bellator: CHAMPS, ‘Pressure’ faced the 2023 PFL Middleweight Champion Impa Kasanganay. The Bellator champion is used to completely dominating bouts from the first bell to the last but Kasanganay pushed Eblen all the way. Prior to the bout, all seven of Eblen’s Bellator decision wins were unanimous but for the first time in his career, the judges were left split at the end of the contest. ‘Pressure’ still got the nod and remained undefeated but there were some questions raised following the bout.
Edwards believes that many had already written off Kasanganay before the bout had even gotten underway and didn’t see much difference in Eblen’s performance from when the pair met at Bellator 299.
"I feel like a lot of people were saying it was a poor performance, and not giving Impa the respect. Impa did some good stuff in there, got dropped, and if he had the gas tank for it and his IQ was a bit better in terms of the grappling, I felt he could have squeezed the fight, but there were a few little areas in there and mistakes he made that cost him that fight.
"I see the same Johnny you know, his striking is not the best, but he’s a tough guy, and he can push through. I feel that’s what’s got him a lot of his wins. Not because he’s a great fighter, but being durable, being tough, and willing to exchange, that’s what’s got him to where he’s at."
