Former undisputed welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman claims unbeaten middleweight contender, Khamzat Chimaev is “nothing special” in the aftermath of their UFC 294 clash back in October – insisting he would have beaten the Chechen if he tried a little more.
Usman, a former undisputed welterweight champion and prior pound-for-pound number one fighter under the promotion’s banner – has been sidelined from the Octagon since he co-headlined against the above-mentioned, Chimaev in October of last year, suffering his third consecutive loss.
With his controversial majority decision win, Chimaev improved to 13-0 as a professional, and sees him currently hold the number 11 rank in the official middleweight pile.
And while staking his claim for an elusive first title fight under the promotion’s banner, Chimaev has seen a championship tilt at the limit against newly-minted gold holder, Dricus du Plessis likely denied by promotional brass – with an offer floated to Israel Adesanya to compete for spoils next.
Kamaru Usman plays down Khamzat Chimaev’s ceiling
Backed by a slew of pundits and fans to eventually land Octagon gold, however, Chimaev’s skills and abilities have been called into question by Usman – who accused those who are “building” him up, are putting their backing behind a contender who is far from special.
“You get in those type of fights and those positions, where you build something up in your mind and in your head,” Kamaru Usman said on the Pound 4 Pound podcast. “And everyone’s now – especially in this machine of the UFC, and MMA, you build him (Khamzat Chimaev) up in your head. Then you get in [the Octagon], and – that wasn’t special.”
“That was nothing different than what I had seen [before],” Kamaru Usman explained. “Had I given it a little bit more, had I have given myself a little bit more credit, that would have turned out totally different.”
Claiming if he so wanted to he could very easily reclaim his welterweight title in the future, Auchi native, Usman also admitted he laments a failed middleweight title siege during the run of Sean Strickland – whom he already holds a decision win over.
Who do you want to see UFC star, Kamaru Usman fight next?