Kamaru Usman has compiled one of the quietest eight-bout UFC winning streaks in recent memory, but he has big plans after earning the signature victory of his career.
Usman cruised to a unanimous verdict over former title challenger Demian Maia in the UFC Fight Night 129 headliner in Santiago, Chile, on Saturday night. After a competitive opening stanza, Usman relied on his athleticism and sprawl to keep the fight standing, and from there, he used on his standup to batter the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt for the better part of the final four rounds.
Usman believes his performance was enough to solidify himself as the division’s No. 1 contender.
“I think I should fight for the belt next. I just dominated [Maia] better than (UFC champion) Tyron Woodley,” Usman said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “Tyron ran from him the whole fight. Tyron threw, what, the fewest strikes in a championship fight ever? And I just went out and I dominated the guy from start to finish.”
The performances weren’t as far apart as Usman might like to believe. Maia entered his UFC 214 title bout with Woodley on a seven-fight winning streak. However, he failed to mount much of a threat against the reigning champ, as Woodley outlanded him by a 57-to-28 count and stuffed all 21 of his takedowns. Usman, meanwhile, outlanded Maia 66 to 27 and defended all 15 of the Brazilian’s attempts to get him to the canvas. Both Woodley and Usman defeated Maia in five-round contests.
In this instance, Maia was a short-notice replacement for Santiago Ponzinibbio, who withdrew from the main event due to injury.
“Demian Maia, he’s a legend. He’s a veteran in the game,” Usman said. “He knows how to fight. He’s been through so many five-round fights. He’s headlined a lot of cards, fought Anderson Silva for the title, fought Tyron Woodley for the title. He’s a veteran, he knows how to fight, and he’s always training. He’s a jiu-jitsu wizard. So I wasn’t coming in thinking, ‘Oh, well, I’m going to be in better shape because he’s taking this fight on three weeks’ notice.’ No, I’m pretty sure he’s been training jiu-jitsu, and he was working. He’s a veteran. He knows how to fight these rounds. This was a new one for me, fighting five rounds, and I just proved that I can go five rounds and still be dominant.
It’s clear that Usman holds Maia in high regard. While the 40-year-old has struggled mightily against wrestlers in his last three outings – a clash with Colby Covington in October yielded a similar outcome – “The Nigerian Nightmare” still believes Maia was his toughest possible foe.
“Let’s be honest. Nobody — nobody in my division wants to fight me, because I am the hardest fight for anybody,” Usman said. “This fight right here, this a fight that Dana White wanted. He wanted to test me against the most dangerous guy in the division, and that was the most dangerous guy in the division. The champion is easier for me to fight. And you’ve got these other two bums that are fighting for an interim title, those guys are bums, those guys are easier for me to fight. This was the hardest fight in the division.”
Usman is referencing the UFC 225 co-main event, which pits Rafael dos Anjos against Colby Covington for the interim 170-pound strap on June 9. The winner will presumably receive a title shot against Woodley down the road.
If Usman can’t get a title shot, he only sees one other desirable matchup on the horizon: the winner of the UFC Fight Night 130 clash between Darren Till and Stephen Thompson on Sunday in Liverpool, England.
“Upwards and onward,” Usman said. “It’s either Woodley or the winner of Till and ‘Wonderboy.’ That’s it.”