Ex-UFC champ Kamaru Usman zeros in on next opponent: 'I like that matchup'
Sean Brady is on top of Kamaru Usman’s hitlist after UFC Fight Night 255.
Brady (18-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) dominated former UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards (22-5 MMA, 14-4 UFC) with a Round 4 submission in Saturday’s main event at The O2 in London.
Both Henry Cejudo and manager Ali Abdelaziz pitched the idea of Usman vs. Brady next. Usman was impressed with Brady’s performance and is on board with the suggestion.
“That’s a good point, Henry, because when you look at styles and the way that fights work, myself and Colby Covington, what did everyone say? ‘Oh, they’re both wrestlers. They’re both economical fighters.’ And you saw what that turned out to be,” Usman said on his “Pound 4 Pound” podcast with Cejudo. “All right, we cancel each other out, we ain’t even going to try to grapple, let’s bang it out.
“Hey, this has the potential to be one of those fights. I like Sean Brady. I like the way he approaches the game, and of course he’s training with Din Thomas now, so that adds an extra element to the game. I like both, but I want to keep that streak of beating all of Din Thomas’ guys. I whooped at least three of his guys, so I want to keep that streak going, but I like that matchup.”
Usman’s pecking order
Usman will look to rebound from a three-fight losing skid. The former welterweight champion gave his order of preference on whom he wants next, with Brady No. 1 on that list.
“If I had to pick the order, I would say Brady, Shavkat (Rakhmonov), (Joaquin) Buckley,” Usman said. “That’s what makes sense because the winner of Brady and I, we fight for the title next because if you look at what Sean Brady just did, he just took out a former champion. Then you fight another former champion, and if he’s able to get through me, it’s hard to deny him that he shouldn’t fight for the title. Who else in the division has a resume like that? No one if Brady is able to do that.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 255.