Kamaru
Usman claims he is battle-ready for his middleweight debut
against Khamzat
Chimaev on Saturday in Abu Dhabi—no matter what you may have
thought you heard.
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Usman (20-3) steps on nine days’ notice to face “Borz” (12-0) in
the co-main event at UFC 294 after Chimaev’s original opponent,
Paulo
Costa, was forced out due to a staph infection. “The Nigerian
Nightmare” recently had fans concerned while drilling a takedown
sequence with teammate Justin
Gaethje during the open workouts. Some media outlets attempted
to decipher words exchanged between the two from ringside footage
of the workout, with some observers believing they had witnessed an
injury to Usman. Rumors spread like wildfire, given Usman’s history
of knee injuries. Shakiel Mahjouri of CBS Sports wrote, “Did I hear that
right at 0:18,” claiming that he had heard Gaethje ask, “Are you
alright?” followed by Usman saying, “No, something popped.”
Gaethje clarified immediately afterwards that he had asked Usman if
he hit his head on the mat, to which the latter replied in the
negative. “The Highlight” wrote, “He said I’m good or something like that. I thought
he hit his head on the mat. I asked him if he hit his head in this
clip when we got up and he said no.”
However, the rumors continued to spread, forcing “The Nigerian
Nightmare” to issue a clarification. Criticizing the media outlets
that had engaged in public speculation, the former UFC welterweight
champ wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “This is why no one
reads this sh-tty ass blog. At what point while I was lightly
drilling did you hear me say that to Justin. Stop with the
clickbait you idiots.”
The speculation was likely due in part to Usman’s history of knee
ailments, which have been severe enough that UFC commentator Joe
Rogan mentioned during Usman’s last fight that he can’t walk on
concrete due to the pain. Usman himself has confirmed that he walks
down stairs backwards due to prolonged knee issues. Usman is
currently on a two-fight skid, losing his welterweight strap to
Leon
Edwards in a shock upset last year before losing a majority
decision in the rematch earlier this year. Meanwhile, Chimaev
hasn’t competed since UFC 279 last September, where he made quick
work of Kevin
Holland in a last-minute matchup after missing weight by 7.5
pounds for a clash against Nate Diaz.