Kamaru Usman and Israel Adesanya say they won’t be pushed into bouts
UFC superstar Kamaru Usman hasn’t been in action since October 2023 when he took a short notice fight against Khamzat Chimaev. “The Nigerian Nightmare” has said he isn’t 100 per cent and is waiting to get healthy before he takes another fight. That hasn’t stopped the likes of Ian Machado Garry from claiming that the former UFC welterweight champion is afraid to step back inside the Octagon.
On an episode of the “Pound 4 Pound” podcast, Kamaru Usman took a moment to address the 170-pounders who insist that he’s afraid to fight them.
“For those of you who keep thinking that I am not fighting because I’m choosing not to fight like all these stupid guys, these stupid fighters that are running their mouths saying,
‘Oh, he doesn’t wanna fight me,’ shut your mouth,” Usman said. “No one is scared of any of you. I’ve been at the top of the division, pound-for-pound, with an iron fist spanking all of y’all for a while. So, listen, when I am healthy I will get in there. I want to fight and I can’t wait to fight to whoop one of y’all. So, shut your mouth all of you stupid welterweights and wait for when I am healthy again. I’ll fight all of you, I don’t care.”
Usman has dropped three straight fights, which is unusual territory for him. With that said, Usman was competitive in all of those bouts and he was cruising to a victory over Leon Edwards in their rematch before being on the receiving end of a late head kick KO. Usman ended up dropping his trilogy fight against “Rocky” and then fell short in his bout with Chimaev.
Elsewhere, Israel Adesanya has long been accustomed to the view from the top. But what happens when a main eventer like Izzy takes a tumble from the summit?
Well, he takes a fresh approach which is exactly the case. For the first time in nearly six years, Adesanya is starting from scratch, stepping into the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 250 to face the #5 ranked 185fer Nassourdine Imavov.
Adesanya is no stranger to adversity, but his back-to-back losses—including a shocking submission defeat to current middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis—have put his career under intense scrutiny.
Despite the setbacks, Izzy had options for his next opponent. And it seems that Nassourdine Imavov wasn’t the only name on the table.
Adesanya could have faced the surging Caio Borralho, whose performances have caught the attention of fans and analysts alike.
However, Adesanya’s decision to face Imavov instead of Borralho sparked fan interest, with some accusing him of avoiding the Brazilian phenom. Borralho himself didn’t hold back, addressing the situation directly and fueling the narrative.
