Kamaru Usman admits he 'grew a little bit of appreciation' for Colby Covington since their first fight

UFC welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman has revealed that he appreciates Colby Covington’s fighting skills and ability to promote their fights. Addressing this during the UFC 268 pre-fight press conference, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ clarified, however, that he doesn’t respect Covington as a person.

When asked how he handles the experience of fighting Colby Covington, Usman stated:

“No, I love it. I’ve said it. I appreciate everything that he does; everything that he comes with. I love it because it’s another challenge for me to get over. And, you know, at this point in life, at this point in my career, I look forward to those challenges. On Saturday night, you know, I’ll do what I do best, and that’s smash another challenge... I wouldn’t say [Colby Covington is] the most difficult matchup. I would say that he is very, very talented. I give him props, you know. He’s very, very talented. You know, he works hard, and he comes to fight each and every time. But, like I’ve said before, in the era where he existed, he has to live with the fact that somebody was there that was better.”

Kamaru Usman was further asked whether he appreciated the trash talk that Colby Covington brought to the matchup. He was also asked if he would shake Covington's hand after the fight. 'The Nigerian Nightmare’ replied by saying:

“Absolutely. Like I said – I appreciate all my children. And he is my son... After I break his, you know, the other part of his face, absolutely, I’ll shake his hand – If he’s still in the cage and not run away like he did last time... I love what he brings to the table. He pushed me, you know, last time. And, you know, I expect that from him this time. But as a person, he’s a rotten piece of sh**. And I can’t believe his father let him put this persona on.”

You can watch the UFC 268 pre-fight press conference in the video below:

---

Kamaru Usman aims to keep his No.1 pound-for-pound status, while the threat of Khamzat Chimaev looms large

Presently, Kamaru Usman is ranked as the UFC’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter. He’s heralded amongst the true greats in the sport of MMA today. Usman is set to defend his UFC welterweight title against archrival Colby Covington at UFC 268 on November 6.

Kamaru Usman already owns a win over ‘Chaos’, whom he’d bested in 2019. Regardless, many believe that Covington poses a huge stylistic threat to Usman, primarily due to his wrestling credentials. Needless to say, Usman will surely be aiming to pull out all the stops as he defends his welterweight title and pound-for-pound status at UFC 268.

Furthermore, one of the biggest talking points coming out of last month’s UFC 267 event was Khamzat Chimaev. Many are touting ‘Borz’ as the future of the UFC welterweight and middleweight divisions, and a potential fight between him and Kamaru Usman has been one of the most-discussed dream matchups over the past few days.

Whether or not a Kamaru Usman vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight comes to fruition remains to be seen.