Christian Edwards: Grant Neal the biggest fight of my career and I couldn’t be more excited
Bellator MMA light heavyweight Christian Edwards discusses his fight against Grant Neal at Bellator 278 and his path back to winning.
Christian Edwards has not competed since suffering his first career professional loss at Bellator 266 to Ben Parrish, in one of the most shocking upsets of 2021, and now, he’s itching to right his lone career wrong. Edwards, a light heavyweight rising prospect for Bellator MMA is a product of the JacksonWink team in Albuquerque, New Mexico and has had eyes on him since he started off his career with 5 consecutive wins all with Bellator since 2019.
Looking to bounce back from his loss to Parrish, he was scheduled to face Kevin Haley this past February but Edwards was forced to withdraw due to contracting COVID-19 just days before the fight. After recovering from COVID-19, Edwards was quickly rebooked and this time it’s against 9th-ranked Grant Neal, and the opportunity has him excited.
Speaking to MyMMANews, Christian Edwards discussed the opportunity to fight Grant Neal at Bellator 278, getting back to his winning ways, and why he’s okay with taking a patient approach through his career.
With quite a difference in his last two scheduled opponents, Edwards is relishing the opportunity to face a ranked opponent and he knows it is the biggest challenge of his career.
“I feel good, this is a fight that I always knew that they [Bellator MMA] would make for me one day, just because they’ve built us up in a very similar way. I have a lot of respect for Grant Neal and I’m definitely not going to overlook him, not going to overlook him at all, but I definitely believe that overall I’m a more well-rounded fighter than he is. Everybody knows that his game plan is to double-leg you and get you to the ground and hold you down, that’s his game plan every fight. With me, I can win the fight wherever I choose. I believe the advantage as being well-rounded goes to me, I’m pumped. This is the biggest fight of my career and I couldn’t be more excited about it.”
Both Edwards and Neal are highly-touted prospects in the light heavyweight division, and both of them are coming off of losses in their most recent fight, and the loser of this matchup could face a long road back to establishing themselves in the division. Knowing what’s on the line against Neal, Edwards is ready to show that he belongs among the division’s elite.
“There is a lot on the line in this fight and I realize what is at stake, it is the most important fight of my career. I’ve always been the type of person who thrives under pressure, pressure has never been a problem for me. It’s really going to show in this fight, that’s when I compete at my best is when I really feel the pressure of the moment. I want to feel that, it makes me work harder, push harder, and fight harder, and that’s what I want.”
Speaking calmly yet confidently, Christian Edwards has a message for those who will be in attendance at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Hawaii, and for everyone else who will be watching the Bellator 278 card, he’s coming to fight his fight.
“The main thing for me in this fight is just pressure and making him fight my fight, that’s the main thing for me in this fight. Making him fight my fight. The pace I can keep for the whole three rounds, I believe is too much for him and he’s going to fold the moment I put the pressure on him. Dominance. Dominance is what you’re going to see in this fight.”
It’s been quite some time since Christian Edwards has had the opportunity to get back to his winning ways, and his fight against Grant Neal at Bellator 278 will provide him the opportunity to return in a big way, and he’s ready to seize the opportunity.
