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JACKSONVILLE, FL – APRIL 25: Kamaru Usman of Nigeria punches Jorge Masvidal of the United States during the Welterweight Title bout of UFC 261 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on April 25, 2021 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images)
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JACKSONVILLE, FL – APRIL 25: Kamaru Usman of Nigeria punches Jorge Masvidal of the United States during the Welterweight Title bout of UFC 261 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on April 25, 2021 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Alex Menendez/Getty Images)
UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is now the no.1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world in the newly released rankings. He surpassed Jon Jones recently. Also, featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski moved into the top 3 after his phenomenal scrap against Brian Ortega at UFC 266. He jumped ahead of Israel Adesanya who is now no.4.
Usman has been absolutely dominant since making his debut in the UFC. He bettered Tyron Woodley at UFC 235 to become the champion. A knockout win against Colby Covington marked his first defense. A decision against Jorge Masvidal, and two back-to-back knockouts of Gilbert Burn and Masvidal in their rematch followed.
Kamaru Usman has supplanted Jon Jones as the top men's pound for pound fighter in the newly released UFC rankings. pic.twitter.com/bCC2EBLJj6
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) September 28, 2021
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Francis Ngannou, Dustin Poirier, Jan Blachowicz, Stipe Miocic, Max Holloway, and Charles Oliveria complete the top 10. Flyweight champion Brandon Moreno sits just outside the top 10 at the moment.
Kamaru Usman returns at UFC 268
‘The Nigerian Nightmare‘ will engage in a rematch against Colby Covington at UFC 268. The pay-per-view will take place in November at Madison Square Garden. Usman and Covington produced one of the greatest title fights in recent history when they collided at UFC 245. Usman came out victorious via a fifth-round finish in a back-and-forth battle.
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Usman has shown massive improvement since that fight as well. His hands look sharper than ever. The vicious knockout against Masvidal is a testament to the same. Given the already phenomenal wrestling pedigree he had, the new version of Usman is a scary proposition for anybody.
But, Covington has revealed he has made changes as well. Many believe ‘Chaos’ is the biggest threat to Usman in the division. Their first fight suggests those claims are true. However, it will take a lot from Covington if he is to better Usman in the rematch.
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Covington has an uncanny pace and conditioning, it’s hard to deny the skills he possesses. Fans often overlook his abilities due to the character he plays outside the Octagon. But, ‘Chaos‘ can back up his trash talk with his skills. But to finally become an undisputed UFC champion, he will have to put on the performance of his life against Usman.
Also Read: WATCH: Israel Adesanya Shows Off Insane $125000 Watch During UFC 266
