Kamaru Usman eyes another finish of Colby Covington at UFC 268, vows to make this performance ‘more flawless’
NEW YORK – Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is just days away from stepping inside the octagon to face a familiar opponent at UFC 268, and even though he finished Colby Covington in their first meeting, there are improvements he wants to make this time around.
Two years ago at UFC 245, Usman (19-1 MMA, 14-0 UFC) took on Covington (16-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC) in an intense fight that was just shy of a minute away from heading to the judges’ scorecards. That was until Usman put together the finishing touches and turned Covington away with a broken jaw to record his first title defense.
Since that fight, Usman has gone on to record three more defenses by defeating Jorge Masvidal twice and former teammate Gilbert Burns. When reflecting on the first fight with Covington, the champ hopes to focus more on execution in their second meeting, which headlines Saturday’s event.
“For me, the wrong that I want to right is in that fight, I fought with emotion,” Usman told MMA Junkie and other reporters at media day. “As much emotion I was willing to display is what I fought with, which is why I think I got hit quite a bit – but it was fun. I had fun. That lets you know that I got a little mad man in me too. I don’t mind getting hit.”
Usman was hit more frequently by Covington than his two recent opponents, and that is something he wants to rectify in the rematch as he eyes another finish of the former interim champion.
“I want to make it a little bit more flawless this time around,” Usman said.
Even if things go according to plan and he records his second stoppage victory over Covington, Usman hopes his foe gets back in the win column and builds his way back up to earn another title challenge.
“Now I’m in the business of pay-per-view,” a smiling Usman stated. “I don’t know if I want him that far back. Of course, I want to go out there and stop him, but I want him to quickly make his way back so I can stop him again for a little bit more money.”
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Other welterweights are quickly entering the title picture, namely Khamzat Chimaev, who recently made a statement in his return to action at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi. After just four fights, all very impressive stoppage wins, he is already being mentioned as a potential title challenger in the near future.
While Usman seems to be a fan of the hype that is around Chimaev, he believes there may be work to be done before he earns a title shot, considering it took him nine fights to get his title shot. However, if Chimaev does get a shorter path to the top, the champ won’t complain about how things unfold.
“He’s done a tremendous job with the opposition he’s been presented with,” Usman said. “No shame in that, he’s doing great. I like it, I love all the hype that’s been there, but let’s all be honest. Life is not fair. We learn that as kids. Some guys get a faster push, some guys don’t. It is what it is.”
UFC 268 takes place at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 6, airing live on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
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