It may have been his second bout in the promotion, but the head kick KO finish by Christian Edwards at Bellator 223 was his introduction to a lot of fans. The kick went viral through the various chains of social media, appeared on ESPN and had every MMA pundit talking. 

How quickly the kick took to the MMA world may not have surprised many who watched it unfold, but it surprised the one who threw it. 

“I didn’t expect it to blow up the way it did,” Edwards said. “It was pretty mind blowing seeing it on World Star Hip Hop, ESPN and crazy stuff like that.”

Edwards was quickly inundated with interview requests that had him on various podcasts and shows. Despite all that, the 21-year old prospect isn’t feeling the pressure of the situation. Instead, he is finding enjoyment in the process. 

“There’s not really any pressure,” Edwards explained. “Honestly I’m just happy my career is taking off as quickly as it is.”

Some of that ease is likely due to the training situation of Edwards. After striking a deal with his management team (Mata Leon) and Jackson-Wink MMA, Edwards has been training with the camp full time. While he does have a job on the weekends to make a little side money, the focus is almost entirely on fighting, a situation few prospects get to enjoy. 

Between the level of focus and the high level training it’s no wonder why Edwards is so comfortable in his career. However, that wasn’t the case when he first arrived. 

“I got [to Jackson-Wink] in July of last year and at first it was pretty intimidating training with people like Jon Jones and Michelle Waterson and John Dodson,” he said. “All of these people I’ve been watching fight for a long time. Now it’s whatever. They’re just my teammates.”

After building some momentum, Edwards is ready to get back into the cage. He targets early 2020 as a likely time to get back in and he’s sure that both of his Bellator performances should make that happen. 

“I’m honestly looking at February, at least,” he said. “But we’ll see, man. I’m sure they’ll take care of me, they’ll find me another fight quickly because I’ve had two really impressive performances - they know I’ll be a household name in Bellator soon.”

As far as who is on the radar of the young man - he’ll of course fight just about anyone. If Bellator wants him to take it slow, he recognizes the situation. If they have other plans, he’ll be ready for those too. 

“There’s no particular opponent that I want. I’m ready to fight anybody,” Edwards shared. “They want to put me up against a top 15 guy - I know I’ll be ready for that fight”