Kamaru Usman scored a lot on Saturday night at UFC 258 in Las Vegas. He won his 13th consecutive UFC fight, breaking Georges St-Pierre’s record for most wins at £ 170. Usman equaled the great Khabib Nurmagomedov for the second biggest win in a row to start a career in the UFC, and is now three wins away from tying Anderson Silva’s record of 16 in a row.
Oh, and that was his 18th overall victory. And guess what? This was the most impressive of the 18 victories.
Not, really.
Usman just stopped a hot Gilbert Burns. He took Burns’ best shot in the first round, came back and then finished Burns by TKO in the third round. He defeated Burns by strikes, which, according to Caesars Sportsbook by William Hill, were priced at +240.
Usman’s struggle has always been there, and now the strike is approaching. Coach Trevor Wittman did it again.
However, Usman continued to repeat after the fight to “respect” his name. He said it several times both in the cage and during his post-fight interview.
To the uninitiated, it might seem strange for a guy with his resume to demand respect, but Usman has a point. When it comes to UFC faces – or even the best in the UFC – his name never seems to appear immediately. They’re usually Nurmagomedov, Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic, Israel Adesanya, Amanda Nunes … and maybe they’re talking about Usman. But he is never mentioned among the best.
It’s wrong and needs to change.
Usman is one of the best UFC competitors right now. He is a top fighter. He may not attract the attention of others, because his style in this dominant run was not very friendly with the fans. However, a few more victories like this will change that.
One thing he isn’t, though – at least not yet – is the heaviest welterweight ever. Yes, I know he just broke a St-Pierre record, but Usman will have to beat – or at least get close to – another to be in that conversation: defending the title successfully. This was Usman’s third successful defense; GSP had 9. There is a massive difference.
This is not to diminish Usman and should not be taken that way. He is now in the territory of Matt Hughes / Pat Miletich. This is a esteemed company. But he’s not a welterweight goat – at least not yet.
Usman has this in common with a prime GSP, though: He stays with new opponents – and fast. Usman defeats Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington, Leon Edwards (though before Usman and Edwards were the fighters they are today) and now Burns, to name a few.
I was curious to see if Usman would call anyone after his victory or just let the division play alone. And you wouldn’t know that, he shouted at his old enemy Masvidal.
What a gift it was for the BMF champion. I felt like I could hear Masvidal celebrating thousands of miles away in South Florida.
You see, Masvidal doesn’t fight too hard to keep fighting Covington. I’m told that Masvidal doesn’t like it so much that he’d rather not pay any attention to it. Of course, Masvidal would do it, but it’s not his first choice. However, he would like to fight Usman again for the title and this time he will do so with a full camp under his belt, as opposed to the fight he accepted with a week’s notice in July.
UFC tries to book Masvidal vs. Covington weeks ago. Matchmakers even discussed having them as new coaches at “The Ultimate Fighter,” sources said. The deal does not end. That’s why Dana White said Friday she will consider booking Covington vs. Edwards in the future. In fact, there was no serious talk about this fight; White’s comment was more of a bargaining chip, at least for now, than reality.
You can now bet that Masvidal will use this call to push the title. In fact, just moments after Usman’s comments, Masvidal’s co-manager, Malki Kawa, dropped the idea for Usman and Masvidal to serve as TUF coaches – and then fight after that, of course.
Let’s do it. TUFF. Masvidal vs usman. We accept.
– malki kawa (@malkikawa) February 14, 2021
Usman-Masvidal 2? Edwards-Covington? Not a bad plan B. Will the UFC bite?
I also see that the UFC is trying to stimulate the call by promising the Covington-Masvidal winner a title. Two for the price of one. I mean, it doesn’t look like Usman will come back and fight in a few months anyway.
Or the UFC can roll back the fight against Masvidal. We all wanted to see her for months last year, before the failed negotiations lead to the booking of the Usman vs. promotion. Burns. Then Burns gave positive results for COVID-19 and, well, you know how the rest went. In addition, the UFC needs some renowned TUF coaches.
For now, though, Usman should feel pretty good about himself. He made history. He is now in conversation with some legends.
And he doesn’t have to worry that no one will soon live up to his name.