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Jorge Masvidal is back on the UFC comeback microphone, and this time he put Leon Edwards right in the crosshairs. Fresh off pushing Gamebred FC onto DAZN, Masvidal says talks with the UFC have been moving enough that a return no longer sounds like loose gym chatter. The name he wants is the one fans have been yelling about since the infamous London backstage scrap. Masvidal and Edwards have never settled the beef inside the cage, which is wild considering the whole thing has survived longer than half the welterweight division’s title plans. Watch the source clip below: Jorge Masvidal hints that big news could be coming soon regarding his UFC return, and names Leon Edwards as an opponent he’d like to face 👀 (via @jeroguerra10) pic.twitter.com/oUtSDshjiy — MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) August 23, 2026 Masvidal Says The UFC Talks Are Getting Closer Masvidal said the UFC discussions have been active, though he stopped short of claiming a signed bout agreement. That is the important part here. This is not a fight announcement yet. It is Masvidal telling everyone the door is open, the money is getting warmer, and the opponent list has one very obvious name circled. “I’ve been talking to the UFC. Could be this year, could be early next year. We’ve been talking for a little bit and the numbers are getting closer and closer and better and better so there might be some big news coming soon,” Masvidal said. He kept going, saying he is waiting on the right mix of opponent and paycheck before he jumps back in. “Waiting for the right names and stuff, but once they give me the right name and the right number attached to that, you’ll see your boy right back over here at the T-Mobile Arena.” Then came the Edwards part, and yeah, it was as direct as it needed to be. “Leon is definitely a prospect. Leon is definitely someone I would like to go back in and close that chapter out.” Masvidal has not fought in MMA since his unanimous decision loss to Gilbert Burns at UFC 287 in April 2023. He moved into boxing afterward and dropped a decision to Nate Diaz in 2025, while Diaz has since kept throwing around his own fresh MMA challenge. Masvidal has been retired, unretired, linked to boxing, tied to Gamebred business, and still somehow connected to UFC welterweight drama the whole time. The Edwards Beef Still Sells Itself The Masvidal-Edwards history is not some manufactured poster nonsense. In March 2019, Masvidal knocked out Darren Till in London, then crossed paths with Edwards backstage during an interview. Masvidal walked over and threw punches, later turning the moment into the famous “three-piece with a soda” line that followed him for years. That clip became part of Masvidal’s BMF mythology, but the actual fight never happened. Edwards went on to win UFC gold, Masvidal fought for the welterweight title twice, and the rivalry kept sitting there like a money fight nobody ever cashed. Masvidal has had plenty of chaos since then, including the Colby Covington lawsuit and his nonstop combat-sports side quests, but Edwards remains the cleanest old score on the board. There is still a matchmaking gap between Masvidal saying the numbers are getting close and the UFC actually booking him. At 41, after more than three years away from MMA, he would be walking back into a welterweight division that has moved on in a hurry. But if the UFC wants a comeback fight that comes pre-loaded with history, heat, and one of the most replayed backstage clips of the ESPN era, Masvidal vs. Edwards is sitting right there.