There were shockwaves through the MMA world when Edwards, who was on the verge of losing on points, knocked out UFC champion and giant Kamaru Usman with just 56 seconds left of their title fight last summer.
Usman had never lost in the UFC and the only defeat of his career to date, from 2013, came in his second pro bout.
On Saturday, the rivals will meet again, for the third time, and compete for the welterweight (77.1-kilogram) champion belt.
"Mentally I'm okay and I've been through tough preparations to win this match," he says.
How Usman was affected by the loss
How were you affected by the loss?
"It was a nice little break from life as a champion, but now I'm ready to show the world again that I'm the best," says Usman, elaborating:
"As a champion, you are drawn in from all sides and have so much responsibility that in the end it doesn't feel like you control your own time anymore. Then I ended up in a place where all that "noise" disappeared, and there were far fewer phone calls and texts coming in. You could say I've become aware of all the noise around.
"He's only second best"
Have you had any watchwords this training camp?
"Not exactly, but you can sum it up as me having to go out and remind him who he is. He may only be second best or third best in the weight class. I know who I am, and now I'm going to remind him.
Usman, who defeated Edwards in their first meeting in 2015, is also trying to take the opportunity to enjoy being part of an exciting trilogy.
"I remember when I was new to this sport and saw the trilogy between Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard and thought 'holy shit, it would have been really cool to be part of a trilogy'. What I didn't think about then is that I have to lose for it to happen, haha. But I strongly believe that no matter how legendary you are, it's okay to stumble sometimes. With this match, I want to rise up and inspire the world.