UFC welterweight champion and #1 pound-for-pound fighter Kamaru “The Nigerian Nightmare” Usman is only days away from his next title defense. He’ll face Leon Edwards in a long-awaited rematch that, as Usman admitted to ESPN, probably means more to Edwards than to him.
Leon Edwards’ last loss was at Usman’s hands, back in 2015. He’s been looking for revenge ever since. Kamaru Usman, however, knows he has a dangerous opponent around the corner in Khamzat Chimaev.
Usman Admits He’s Already Looking Beyond Edwards to Khamzat
“Now I’m fighting Edwards, which I believe is extremely tough. He’s very, very skilled and very good. But he’s maybe not as known and not as popular, so people kind of write it off.
I don’t, I still have to deal with that pressure. But it’s like, okay, after that, where are the moments? What are the moments that are big enough.
Now, there’s another guy people are excited about. People are like, ‘No, that’s the guy, That’s the guy that’s gonna get you.’ That’s another moment.”
Usman claims that Leon Edwards is a “big” fight for him, but acknowledged that a potential bout with Khamzat feels like his intense arch-rivalry with Colby Covington. “The Leon one is big to me.
I’m awake. Every camp is tough. I train just as difficult for every camp. So that is tough. Mentally, I’m still there. There might not be as much noise behind it, but I’m up. Khamzat, if that fight does come about, I have to have the ability not to get wrapped up in what’s gonna happen.
I would be lying if I said that I won’t be getting up much more for that one, because, hey, everywhere I go, people are gonna say, like Covington 1, everywhere I went in the world, people brought it up.
So, it’s almost impossible not to get up for it. So, yeah, it’s almost gonna be impossible to say I won’t get up a little bit more for it. But I have to have the ability to restrain myself.”
Khamzat’s next fight is against Nate Diaz, which the surging Swede is widely expected to win quite easily. That will take place at UFC 279, and if he can extend his undefeated run in the UFC with a win against Nate Diaz, he’s widely expected to challenge the winner of Usman vs Edwards for the 170-pound title. It’s clear that Usman expects to win this weekend.
Will we see Usman vs Khamzat, or will the champ’s focus on a future fight lead to his downfall against Leon Edwards? Let us know in the comments.
