Kamaru Usman surprises everyone by refusing to fight former champion Dricus du Plessis in the UFC.

Kamaru Usman Focused before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram/brwlrz

Hair seen, Kamaru Usman This will not make it easy for the UFC to schedule his next fight. So much so that the former welterweight champion (up to 77,1 kg), who last competed in June in Atlanta (USA), ended his losing streak by dominating his opponent. Joaquin buckleyHe made no secret of it and candidly revealed that he had refused fights offered by the world's largest MMA organization.

In his podcast 'Pound 4 Pound', the Nigerian fighter stated that the UFC had offered him... Dricus du Plessis as an opponent, he explained that he wasn't interested in the fight because he didn't see any importance or purpose in it. Interestingly, like Usman, the South African was also a champion in the company, in his case in the middleweight division (up to 83,9 kg), which would give the hypothetical encounter a different weight class.

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It's worth noting that the veteran, who recently campaigned strongly to challenge for the welterweight title again, expressed his frustration at being denied a fight against the champion by the company. Islam makhachevNow, Usman is 'getting his revenge' by choosing to stay in the weight class and awaits his next fight.

“Other things were presented to me, like the possibility of facing DDP or other guys. But there’s one thing about me: when they call me and talk about this guy or that guy, I don’t think, ‘Hmm, maybe.’ No. I say yes,” said the former UFC champion.

“What matters to me is that it needs to have meaning. At this point, it has to be meaningful. I’m not just here to fight for the sake of fighting. It has to have meaning. If this leads me to the belt, which is what I want, that’s what I want,” he concluded.

Posture is nothing new.

the refusal to Kamaru Usman The UFC's plan isn't surprising. Given his legendary status in MMA, the Nigerian fighter is usually cautious and values ​​himself before accepting fights. In fact, the former welterweight champion went years without competing before agreeing to face Buckley and making peace with victory. With three consecutive losses, the athlete hadn't competed since 2023.