Leon Edwards calls out another Welterweight contender who doesn't want to face him

Leon Edwards recently refused to fight Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson despite the latter being ranked at number five. It's a tricky situation for Leon Edwards because he feels he's closer than ever to a title shot, but he hasn't fought in over a year and looks unlikely to fight in 2020.

Gilbert Burns is the number one contender for the UFC Welterweight Championship and he was scheduled to face Kamaru Usman for the undisputed title in the main event of UFC 256. However, that fight fell through and won't be happening since The Nigerian Nightmare needs more time.

As a result, their fight will likely get re-booked in early 2021. Leon Edwards suggested that with the fight falling through, Gilbert Burns would make a good opponent for him.

The British Welterweight called out the "little tree stump" Gilbert Burns for a "real" number one contender's fight:

December 12th title fight has been postponed. #UFC256 needs a main event! @GilbertDurinho you little tree stump, you have nowhere to run now! Let's see who the REAL number one contender is! @ufc @UFCEurope @danawhite

— Leon 'Rocky' Edwards (@Leon_edwardsmma) October 6, 2020

Is calling out Gilbert Burns a bad look for Leon Edwards?

Ariel Helwani of ESPN had already thrown around the idea of a possible interim title fight between Gilbert Burns and Leon Edwards. The Brazilian, however, refused to face Edwards, asking why he needs to fight to become a number one contender again:

I’m already the number contender, I’m waiting for a title shot. Why should I fight to be a number 1 contender again? You really think that or just hating on Ali again? https://t.co/Z6gOuYlkAQ

— GILBERT BURNS DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) October 6, 2020

It's a fair argument from Gilbert Burns, who did more than enough to earn his title shot this year with a dominant victory over former Champion Tyron Woodley. Ultimately, this gives a bad look for Leon Edwards, who has complained about nobody wanting to fight him while refusing to fight Stephen Thompson.

Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington are expected to face each other in 2021, while Gilbert Burns will get a title shot by simply waiting for a couple of months more than he anticipated.

Leon Edwards has the option of waiting it out as well, but it makes him lose momentum and he won't have a lot of buzz around him by the time he returns. It's hard to deny that Leon Edwards has the least buzz around him in the Welterweight top five. Stephen Thompson might be ranked lower, but he's certainly not a step down in competition for the British star.