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Dana White has opened up about the likelihood of a welterweight super fight between reigning UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman and former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. White clarified that Nurmagomedov won’t come out of retirement and that a fight between him and Usman won’t come to fruition.
During an interview with ESPN MMA’s Max Kellerman, the UFC president was asked about the oft-discussed dream matchup between ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ and ‘The Eagle'.
Kellerman said that he recently spoke to Kamaru Usman and asked him about potential super fights. Kellerman noted that Usman talked about facing professional boxing’s current pound-for-pound king Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in the boxing realm. However, he added that Kamaru Usman didn’t expound upon a possible fight against retired MMA megastar Khabib Nurmagomedov. Dana White responded to this by stating:
“Trust me when I tell you that Khabib is retired. He’s not coming out. So, what’s the point in saying, ‘Oh, yeah, I’d fight Khabib,’ when he’s your friend and you know he’s already retired. Right? Number one.”
“Number two – The real question right now is, and we’re gonna find out, Khamzat Chimaev – Who’s gone on this tear, you know, ripping through people," he added. "He’s got more fights and more fight bonuses than he’s been struck in the UFC. This guy is a rocket ship right now. He gets a fight in the top-five, you start wondering Khamzat Chimaev versus Usman is a serious [fight]. Always another guy.”
Dana White and Max Kellerman both insinuated that no matter how great a champion is, there’s always another individual who eventually comes up to replace him.
You can watch Dana White’s conversation with Max Kellerman in the video below:
Kamaru Usman aims to defend his throne and pound-for-pound status against one of his fiercest rivals at UFC 268
Presently, Kamaru Usman is ranked as the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC. Nevertheless, as the old adage in combat sports goes, you’re only as good as your last fight.
Kamaru Usman is scheduled to defend his UFC welterweight belt and aims to keep his pound-for-pound status intact against Colby Covington at UFC 268 on November 6th. Usman beat ‘Chaos’ back in 2019, but it’s believed that Covington is still one of the toughest stylistic matchups for the champ right now.
Moreover, the personal jibes in their long-running feud add yet another layer of intrigue to the clash, with the intensity of their rivalry reaching a crescendo as the MMA community approaches their rematch.
Ahead of the face-off, things heated up between the two earlier this week. At the pre-fight press conference, the two hurled insults at each other, with Usman even shoving his opponent backwards.
Having added yet another chapter to their feud, Usman and Covington have thus set the stage for a much-awaited rematch.
