Kamaru Usman won a lot on Saturday night at UFC 258. He won his 13th straight welterweight fight in the UFC, which broke Georges St-Pierre’s record for most consecutive wins, with 170. He also tied with the great Khabib Nurmagomedov in the second biggest win in a row to start a career in the UFC. And he is now three wins away from equalizing Anderson Silva’s record of 16 in a row.
Oh, and that was his 18th overall win, too. And guess what? That was the most impressive of those 18 victories.
No, same.
He just stopped a sizzling Gilbert Burns. He had the best chance of Burns in the first round, recovered and submitted him by technical knockout in the third round. He defeated Burns through attacks, which, according to William Hill’s Caesars Sportsbook, cost +240.
Your fight has always been there, and now striking is also happening. Coach Trevor Wittman did it again.
Still, Usman continued to repeat after the fight to “put some respect” on his behalf. He said this several times in the cage and during the post-fight interview.
For the uninitiated, it may seem strange for a guy with your resume to ask for respect, but he’s right. When we talk about the faces of the UFC – or even the best of the UFC – his name never seems to come up right away. It’s usually Khabib, Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic, Israel Adesanya, Amanda Nunes … and then maybe Usman will be discussed. But he was never mentioned among the best.
This is wrong and needs to change.
Usman is one of the best UFC athletes today. He’s the best weight-for-weight fighter. He may not get the attention of others because his style during this dominant race has not been very fan friendly. However, a few more victories like this will change that.
One thing he is not – at least not yet – is the greatest welterweight of all time. Yes, I know he just broke a GSP record, but he’s going to have to beat – or at least get close to – another to be in this conversation: successful title defenses. This was Usman’s fourth title defense. GSP was 11. There is a huge difference.
This is not to diminish Usman and should not be interpreted in this way. He is now in the territory of Matt Hughes / Pat Miletich. It is a esteemed company. But he is not the GOAT welterweight. Not yet, at least.
He has this in common with a main GSP: he is doing away with new opponents. Is fast. He has wins over Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington, Leon Edwards (although before Usman and Edwards were the fighters they are today) and now Burns, to name a few.
I was curious to see if he would call someone after his victory or just let the division play alone. And you wouldn’t know, he called his former enemy Masvidal.
What a gift it was for the BMF champion. I felt like I could hear Masvidal celebrating thousands of miles away, in South Florida.
See, Masvidal isn’t really looking forward to fighting Covington next. He doesn’t like him so much that he prefers not to give him any attention, I heard. Sure, he would do that, but it’s not your first choice. He would, however, love to fight Usman for the title again, and this time with a full camp on his resume, as opposed to the week-long fight he agreed to in July.
The UFC has been trying to score Masvidal vs. Covington for weeks. Matchmakers even discussed having them as the new coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter”, the sources say. The deal is simply not being closed. That’s why Dana White said on Friday that she would consider Covington’s next reservation. Edwards. In fact, there was no serious conversation about making this fight. His comment was more of a negotiating ploy, at least for now, than reality.
Now you can bet that Masvidal will use this callout to try the title shot. In fact, just a few moments after Usman’s comments, Masvidal’s co-manager, Malki Kawa, dismissed the idea of Usman and Masvidal serving as TUF coaches – and fighting later, of course.
Let’s do it. TUF. Masvidal vs usman. We accept.
– malki kawa (@malkikawa) February 14, 2021
Usman-Masvidal 2? Edwards-Covington? It’s not a bad plan B. Will the UFC bite?
I can also see the UFC trying to jumpstart the call by promising the Covington-Masvidal winner a shot at the title. Two for the price of one. I mean, it’s not like Usman is going to turn around and fight in a few months anyway.
Or the UFC may simply delay the fight against Masvidal. We all wanted to see that for months last year, before failed negotiations led to the promotion for Usman vs. Reserve. Burns. So Burns tested positive for COVID-19 and, well, you know how it went. In addition, the UFC needs some renowned TUF coaches.
For now, however, Usman must feel very good about himself. He made history. He is now talking to some legends.
And he doesn’t have to worry about anyone not putting any respect on his behalf anytime soon.