It’s no secret that UFC President Dana White has a poor relationship with former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, who is rarely excluded from the “greatest of all time” conversations among MMA fans and media.
Probably because “Rush” walks to the beat of his own drum.
That may explain why White is in such a big hurry to boost reigning 170-pound kingpin Kamaru Usman into the top spot among all-time greats, at least in his current weight class, just days out from “The Nigerian Nightmare’s” return to action.
“Usman is tied with GSP for consecutive UFC wins at 12,” White told TMZ. “If he wins this weekend, he breaks GSP’s record for 13. He’s on a 16-fight win streak. This guy has not lost in seven years. He hasn’t lost since 2013. If he can get through Gilbert Burns on Saturday night, which is going to be a tough fight, he’s a guy that will just keep grinding, and one day we’re all going to wake up and go ‘oh wow’ and we’re all going to be talking about GOAT status for this guy.”
Or we could be talking about another bookie-busting upset if opponent Gilbert Burns is able to turn the division on its head this weekend (Sat., Feb. 13, 2021) in the UFC 258 pay-per-view (PPV) main event, held inside APEX center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“Durinho” was originally booked to face “The Nigerian Nightmare” last July.
If Usman, 33, wants to surpass St-Pierre in the memories of fickle fight fans, he may need to venture outside his comfort zone. “Rush” returned from a four-year layoff to capture the middleweight title from then-champion Michael Bisping back in 2017, breaking his promise along the way.
The journey for Usman continues this weekend in “Sin City.”