After praise for accepting an unenviable task on short-notice last week, it’s fair to say fight week hasn’t been particularly kind to former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. He makes his middleweight debut this weekend at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi against the man many tipped to dethrone him at 170lbs – unbeaten contender Khamzat Chimaev. After Wednesday’s open workout, the noise has instead centred around the state of his long-standing knee issues.
Usman has 185lb title in sights as friend Adesanya on hiatus
UFC 294 from Abu Dhabi’s Ethiad Arena on Saturday
Middleweight: Kamaru Usman (#1 welterweight) vs. Khamzat Chimaev (#4 ww)
Dana White confirmed next middleweight title shot for co-main event winner
Main card from 7pm BST, Usman-Chimaev after 8.30pm BST
Just six months ago, two-time middleweight champion Israel Adesanya was rejoicing in the cage having finally overcome the Alex Pereira problem that lingered for seven years and across two different combat sport disciplines.
Since that memorable night in Miami, he fell woefully short of high expectations on the promotion’s return to Australia – knocked down and effectively nullified for large periods over 25 minutes by perennial contender Sean Strickland.
Stylebender lost his title in such a startling manner last month that put the rest of the division on notice even before he confirmed last week a long break from fighting was next on the agenda for a 34-year-old with 16 fights in five-and-a-half years.
Putting that into context, 11 fighters across Saturday’s 13-fight card haven’t yet got 16 professional bouts to their name – including Chimaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC).
That’s where Usman arrives on the scene, after Paulo Costa (#6 middleweight) was forced to withdraw with an elbow infection after needing two surgeries.
Saving the day is great, as featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski is similarly doing in the main event against former foe Islam Makhachev for lightweight gold.
But as Volk said himself midweek, it comes with consequences if you fall short. There’s no third opportunity for the Aussie, if he dares to be great in a second weight class and falls narrowly short once more as he did back in their February thriller.
Usman’s cloak of invincibility cracked when Leon Edwards scored a stunning head kick knockout in the final minute of their rematch last August, and he looked a step slower during their trilogy seven months later. Seven more have passed since, and father time will not be kind given his style, should he stick around much longer.
That’s why outlining an ambitious three-fight retirement plan – finishing on top – makes sense. Verbalising it isn’t exactly wise, but when you get asked the same questions during a fight week you weren’t prepared for, it comes with the territory.
Chimaev has scored takedowns in all but one of his UFC contests – a 17-second demolition job of Gerald Meerschaert three years ago last month.
Usman’s takedown defence stands at 97% but after losing that perfect streak during the aforementioned Edwards defeat last summer, something has got to give.
Chimaev is naturally the bigger man and often hinted at being a two-weight world champion, while this unorthodox opportunity was one too significant for Usman to ignore. Under different circumstances, this fight would have a different feel.
Usman’s friendship with former foe and title challenger Gilbert Burns is well-documented, so he would’ve taken encouragement from watching Durinho stand toe-to-toe with Borz at UFC 273 in a firefight many believed he did enough to win.
Burns: 119 of 200 significant strikes landed (59%)
Chimaev: 108 of 223 sig strikes (48%), 2/3 takedowns completed
Whether the 29-year-old has cleaned up his striking defence and focused more on staying composed when things get hairy on the feet – they will at some stage – remains to be seen, but the same must be said of Usman, especially given the wear-and-tear on a body that has been wrestling since high school in the early 2000s.
Chimaev can rebuild should he fall short, but Usman’s future would be uncertain with defeat here. The jeopardy of a short-notice fight, given the championship stakes, makes this co-main event more compelling – and it’s the former champion’s first three-round fight since January 2018 too. Chimaev hadn’t made his MMA debut then.
UFC 294 card, is as follows
Main card
Lightweight: Islam Makhachev (c) vs. Alexander Volkanovski (c)
Middleweight: Kamaru Usman [1, welterweight] vs. Khamzat Chimaev [4, ww]
Light-heavyweight: Magomed Ankalaev [2] vs. Johnny Walker [7]
Middleweight: Ikram Aliskerov vs. Warlley Alves
Bantamweight: Said Nurmagomedov vs. Muin Gafurov
Prelims
Flyweight: Tim Elliott [10] vs. Muhammad Mokaev [11]
Lightweight: Mohammad Yahya vs. Trevor Peek
Bantamweight: Javid Basharat vs. Victor Henry
Middleweight: Abu Azaitar vs. Sedriques Dumas
Lightweight: Mike Breeden vs. Anshul Jubli
Featherweight: Nathaniel Wood vs. Muhammad Naimov
Women’s Strawweight: Victoria Dudakova vs. Jinh Yu Frey
Middleweight: Sharabutdin Magomedov vs. Bruno Silva
Picture source: Getty Images
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