Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Kamaru Usman prefers for his fight against Jorge Masvidal to happen at UFC 249, behind closed doors.
As far as UFC Dana White is concerned, UFC 249 will go on as planned. No venue has been finalized yet, but if it does push through, it will likely have the same treatment as UFC Brasilia with no screaming fans around.
And it is exactly how Kamaru Usman wants it, if he does end up fighting Jorge Masvidal on the same card.
“The real reason I wanted the fight is because, guys, this guy is so much hype, he understands, he knows he can’t hold a candle to who I am, to what I can do,” Usman said in a recent video he released via Twitter (transcript by MMA Junkie). “He knows that. This guy is all hype. He relies on the hype. He relies on all the casual fans to jump on the bandwagon; that’s what he’s relying on. But I knew that fight would not have people in the stands; it would be empty.
“So old school wrestling style, like I be doing way back in high school, just us in the gym, we don’t need the crowd, we don’t need anybody.
“You know why, guys? Because I want you guys to hear what I’m about to say to him in there. I want you guys to hear every blow,” he continued. “I want you guys to hear, once I take him down, every punch, every elbow, every ground-and-pound strike I throw. I want you guys to hear him squeal like the pig that he is.”
The real reason I ASKED FOR THE @GamebredFighter FIGHT!!! #exposed #Whencloutchasinggoeswrong pic.twitter.com/fhYHtJ4RPH
— KAMARU USMAN (@USMAN84kg) March 31, 2020
Usman went on to detail the violence he plans on imposing against “Gamebred.”
“I’m not even sure he’s Cuban, guys. He could be Puerto Rican or Dominican, something, and they’re not even claiming him,” the champ said. “Not even Mexico is claiming him. Y’all see him wearing a Mexican color one day; the next day he’s wearing this, he’s wearing that. Nobody is claiming this guy, but I wanted you guys to hear him squeal like a pig, like the little b-tch that he is.
“I wanted you guys to hear the weird sounds he’s going to make once I elbow him and I’m slicing up his face and dropping hammers on his face. I wanted you guys to hear all that. Nobody in the stands, no fans to cheer him on so he feels like he’s somebody, nobody, just me and him, that’s how I like to break guys.”
As of this posting, UFC 249 is still penned for April 18th.