If you still feel the same about it @USMAN84kg,
let’s go. I will be ready. https://t.co/hiYf2MvhtK— Jan Blachowicz (@JanBlachowicz)
May 25, 2024
Kamaru
Usman believes he is big enough to fight at light
heavyweight.
At UFC 276, then-welterweight champ Usman (20-4) squared off with
Jan
Blachowicz (29-10-1) in July 2022. Although competing 35 pounds
apart, “The Nigerian Nightmare” did not give up much size to the
former light heavyweight champion. Blachowicz measures two inches
taller while also holding a two-inch advantage in reach, but
Usman’s last three outings saw him square off against a 6-foot-2
opponent.
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Usman recently brought up his faceoff with Blachowicz, reiterating
the similarity in their sizes. While Blachowicz is known to pack
immense power, Usman still believes he has the stylistic advantage
over the top Polish contender. According to Usman, he could handle
Blachowicz on the feet if he tires him out with grappling.
“You see me. You see my arms next to his,” Usman remarked to
Henry
Cejudo during their “Pound 4 Pound Show” on
Thursday. “I was like, ‘Yo!’ Everybody was talking about ‘He’s a
light heavyweight’ but I was out there thick on him… I was thick on
him, I’m telling you. I wouldn’t have called for 205 pounds if I
didn’t think at that point that the style favored me and I could do
it.”
Usman continued, “Listen, everybody’s got power when the fight
starts, but you grab their leg, and you drag him down once, twice,
make him work up and work up, the fight completely changes. And
that’s exactly what I was gonna do. Glover
Teixeira did the exact same thing, too… Eventually, fatigue
makes cowards of us all. So, you wear somebody down enough, he
might make me look like Mike Tyson. That’s why I like that
fight.”
Taking note of Usman’s comments, Blachowicz called “The Nigerian
Nightmare” out for a light heavyweight clash.
“If you still feel the same about it [Kamaru
Usman], let’s go. I will be ready,” Blachowicz retorted on
social
media.
Blachowicz hasn’t competed since a split decision loss to Alex
Pereira at UFC 291 in July 2023. The former 205-pound champ has
only won once since losing his strap to Teixeira in 2021,
prevailing over Aleksandar
Rakic when Rakic injured his knee. The two were slated to run
it back in January, but Blachowicz was forced out of the UFC 297
pairing when he needed shoulder surgery. Meanwhile, former
170-pound king Usman is on a three-fight slump, with back-to-back
title losses against Leon
Edwards and an unsuccessful middleweight debut against Khamzat
Chimaev.