Edson Barboza open to Paul Felder trilogy fight: “Why not?”

UFC featherweight contender Edson Barboza says he is open to a trilogy fight with top lightweight Paul Felder in the near future.

Barboza defeated Makwan Amirkhani via unanimous decision in the co-main event of UFC Fight Island 5 to snap a three-fight losing skid. One of those losses came against Felder when Barboza dropped a highly-controversial split decision to his rival at UFC 242. Barboza and Felder previously met at UFC on FOX: Dillashaw vs. Barao 2 in 2015, so the pair are 1-1 against each other, and both have spoken about a potential trilogy fight in the past.

Felder is not officially retired by any means but at this point, he says he only wants big fights if he will step back into the cage. Felder also works as a UFC announcer and following Barboza’s win over Amirkhani at UFC Fight Island 5, both Felder and Barboza were seen talking to each other through the cage. Speaking to reporters following UFC Fight Island 5, Barboza explained what he told Felder during their conversation.

“I said to him, ‘Bro, come in here, let’s do the third fight right now.’ Nah, I’m kidding,” Barboza said.

“I say, ‘Hey bro, I think I won this fight, what you think?’ He said, ‘You got it, you got it.’ Paul Felder’s such a nice guy. I fight with him twice and we spent a lot of time together training together in New Jersey. He’s such a nice guy. He said, ‘Nah I’m done,’ but I really hope he’s not stopping because he’s a great fighter. I love to watch his fights. And hey, you never know. Maybe I fight with him again. Why not?”

Barboza is currently trying to make a run for the featherweight title, while Felder is a lightweight, so we probably won’t see this fight next. But it is certainly the kind of trilogy fight that would get fans excited and likely one we will see before it’s all said and done.

Do you want to see the trilogy fight between Edson Barboza and Paul Felder?