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Fabian Edwards warns Falco Neto Lopes 'shouldn't be fighting me'

British lightweight Fabian Edwards will face Falco Neto Lopes in his hometown on the Bellator Birmingham card on Saturday. Bellator

Fabian Edwards says Falco Neto Lopes "should not be fighting me" in his hometown fight at Bellator Birmingham on Saturday.

Edwards (6-0) is keen to climb Bellator's middleweight division quickly, and the undefeated Brit feels that he deserves tougher competition than Lopes (11-9).

"He should not be fighting me," Edwards told ESPN. "He's got more experience than me, but I'm one of the main attractions on the Birmingham card.

"I asked for another guy with a better win ratio, but I've come to accept that I can't control what Bellator does, I can't control the match-ups. I have to take it, show a dominant performance, and move forward."

Edwards -- the younger brother of UFC lightweight Leon -- expects to channel his restlessness into an early finish at Birmingham's Resorts World Arena.

"I see a first round K.O. I'm feeling like a savage, I'm fighting in front of my home crowd, I'm just looking to go out there and be the finisher that I am."

Finisher is a fitting word to describe the younger Edwards brother, who goes by the nickname 'The Assassin' and has shown his ruthlessness with five finishes in his six wins as a professional fighter. He has also demonstrated his versatility via the methods of his stoppages, with knockouts by flying knee and body kick, and submissions by armbar and rear-naked choke.

But before he was wiping the floor with his opponents, Edwards was literally wiping floors. It was barely two years ago that Edwards swapped his job as a cleaner for one as a cage-fighter. "When I was doing that job, I wasn't thinking, 'This is it for me, this is my life'," he said. "I was doing a job that I didn't want to do, but I just thought to myself, 'It's okay. Do what you have to do to fund your MMA training. This won't last forever.'

"I was signed by Bellator a few months later. I always knew that I would get signed by a big promotion. I know I'm going to be a champion, I know I'm going to be a legend. I'm not working just to earn a bit of money and then get out. I'm in this sport to be remembered forever."

To be remembered forever, Edwards will one day have to capture the Bellator middleweight title, and 'The Assassin' expressed a desire to see the promotion host a tournament for that belt, which is held by former UFC fighter Gegard Mousasi.

The promotion is currently holding a welterweight 'grand prix', which saw Rory MacDonald -- another former UFC fighter -- defend his title on Saturday. The Canadian has been the subject of much conversation this week for his post-fight comments, as he admitted that he is unsure if he has the "drive to hurt people" anymore, after fighting to a draw against John Fitch.

Such an attitude "puts MacDonald in danger" in the ring, said Edwards, who views punishment from a pragmatic perspective, although it sometimes veers into pleasure.

"I wouldn't say I get an enjoyment out of hurting people... Okay, I'm lying. I love a good K.O. But I don't want to cause opponents life-long pain," Edwards said. "But the way I see it, I have a family to feed, I've got kids. The only way I can achieve my goals is by hurting someone.

"It's not just a sport in my eyes. I view football as a sport, but I view fighting as something different. I'm literally going out there to fight for my life."