Leon Edwards upsets Kamaru Usman to win UFC welterweight title  Great Britain's Leon Edwards knocked out Kamaru Usman in an emotional up...

Leon Edwards upsets Kamaru Usman to win UFC welterweight title 

Great Britain's Leon Edwards knocked out Kamaru Usman in an emotional upset to win the welterweight title at UFC 278 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Behind the points in the fifth, Edwards, 30, landed a left uppercut that stunned Nigeria's number one pound-for-pound fighter.

Edwards becomes the first British champion since Michael Bisping in 2016 and only the second in history.

"You all doubted me, saying I couldn't do it - look at me now," Edwards said. "I'm out of the trenches. I'm built this way. I've been doubted all my life but look at me now."

In defeating Usman, Birmingham's Edwards avenges his 2015 loss and ends the 35-year-old's 15-fight unbeaten streak in the UFC.

Jamaican-born Edwards, who was heavily underrated by bookies for the fight, extends his winning streak to 10 following a defeat to Usman seven years ago.

Usman won the first fight by using his wrestling to control the bulk of the contest - a technique Edwards says opened his eyes to weaknesses in his grappling game.

In the first round he defeated Usman, becoming the first fighter in UFC history to complete a takedown of the Nigerian.

Usman responded strongly in the second and third rounds, pressuring Edwards with a series of strikes and controlling much of the contest with his grappling.

At the end of the round Edwards' corner loudly urged their fighter to step up his game and "move his hands".

Edwards began to show signs of fatigue in the fourth match, brought on by a strong hold from Usman, as the champion went down and continued to control the fight.

With Usman ahead on points entering fifth Edwards needed something special - and the Briton delivered.

He frantically pulled Usman's head to the side, before landing a clean left, leaving the Nigerian stunned on the canvas.

Edwards jumped the cage in celebration as the enormity of what he had achieved began to sink in.

Commentator Joe Rogan said the kick that ended the fight may have been the best ever seen in the UFC, with Edwards shocking Usman in the fifth while trailing on points and arguably the greatest player to ever upset the sport.

"I was born in Jamaica with nothing - look at me now"

Edwards was born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica, before moving to England at the age of nine.

His father was a gang leader in Jamaica, which meant that Edwards was exposed to gang violence, including shootings, from an early age.

At the age of 13 Edwards' father was murdered, which plunged him into Birmingham's gang culture, before finally escaping through mixed martial arts when he joined a fight gym four years later.

Training in MMA was the way Edwards needed to channel his energies into something positive, and his dedication showed as he rose through the ranks after joining the UFC.

Following the victory over Usman, an emotional Edwards paid tribute to his mother. "I was born in Jamaica with nothing. I lived in a wooden shed with a zinc roof. Look at me now, he said.

"Pound for pound, head shot, it's dead. I said it's possible, we can win the belt from England, I told you.

He continued: "I want to thank God first. Mom, I love you, I told you I would do it for you, I told you I would change your life.

"The whole week I felt like this is my time, everything in the past, two years, the tragedy, look at me now, I'm the champion of the world. "Thank you Dana [Mzungou - president of the UFC], and to the UFC for giving an opportunity to a child that was born nothing, thank you."

Cameras showed Edwards crying on a video phone with his mother backstage following the fight, saying "I told you mum, I was going to do it" while further footage showed a wild celebration at his gym in Birmingham.