Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman has not stepped into the Octagon since failing to recapture his title from Leon Edwards earlier this year.
He wants to return to action soon, but told TMZ that he’s not at all interested in facing a major name: Khamzat Chimaev, who is currently in the 185-pound middleweight division.
Former UFC Champ Kamaru Usman Slams Khamzat Chimaev
“I’m shooting for this year, fall. We’ll see. I’ve already said, ‘Hey, I’m ready to fight,’ but the thing too is it has to make sense.
Who on the planet didn’t agree that that Khamzat fight made sense? But your guy who has been in the UFC, what, two years now, and he fought literally five guys, five fights, they have you ranked at No. 3.
You fought one ranked guy. They have you ranked at No. 3 in my division. I’m No. 1 and I say OK let’s fight. I’ll go down and fight you. It didn’t matter where, but then you say, ‘No, I don’t want to make that weight. Come up to middleweight to fight me.’
Wait, so you want to tell me, the former champion, at this weight, that’s No. 1 ranked in the world at that weight, that I need to move up to middleweight to fight.
Who are you? Who are you? That’s what I’m saying. It’s the disrespect of the sport. I even wanted to make it sweet and I said, ‘UFC, you know what? I’ll give you that catchweight. I’ll give you a catchweight.
You name the catchweight and I’ll give it to you.’ And [Chimaev says,] ‘Oh no, I can’t make that. Come up to middleweight.’
So you want me, who’s put the time in and done everything in this sport, to come up to middleweight to fight you, who’s done nothing in this sport, because you’re hype?
Come on, man, that made no sense. And it didn’t make sense for the UFC as well, so the UFC said [to Chimaev], ‘You know what? We’ll find you someone.’
I think he’s got his hands full. If the right Paulo Costa shows up in a fight, he’s got his hands full.” Usman did, however, express serious interest in an elite welterweight.
““The only guys that would even make sense right now, Wonderboy, because he’s an opponent, he’s been around so long and he’s just that name to where it’s always a great fight.
His style is very, very difficult to fight. He’s just one of those names in my era that I never really got to fight. So I think Wonderboy, I would definitely consider that.”
