Usman shuts down injury rumours

Former UFC Welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman, has shut down rumours of an alleged injury ahead of his Saturday fight. Earlier this week, a video surfaced showing what appeared to be the moment when Usman got injured while training with Justin Gaethje. While Gaethje has since given his explanation as to what occurred, ruling out the possibility of an injury, fans are not taking his word for it. 

Usman has taken his time to address the incident, denying that he was injured. The Nigerian nightmare persuaded his fans not to believe everything they saw on the internet, insisting that he was fine. 

In a video he released on YouTube, he said: “Guys, this is crazy. Yesterday, seeing the tweet, it just goes to show how crazy people just jump on news and media and, ‘Oh, that must be true. That person said that! That person said that!’ Whoever started it, whoever said they heard or saw: How could you have possibly heard what I said when it’s me and Justin on a stage, in front of thousands of people in a mall? Were you next to us where you heard what I was saying?”

He continued: “How stupid. Just dumb. If my knee was hurt, why would I get up and (continue) hitting mitts? Oh my God. People believe anything you put on the internet. Anything. Any **** thing. Whoever that was, stop it. Stop with the clickbait. (I) did not say that. Clearly, I’m fine. Dummies: I’m fine.”

From the strong-worded statement, Usman has made it clear to everyone that he is fine, and the rumour of an injury is simply what it is – a rumour. Ahead of his Middleweight debut, the news of the injury, albeit false, is quite unfortunate, especially when you take into context the fact that Usman stepped up as a replacement for Paulo Costa, who had to drop from the fight due to an infection. 

Even though it’s his first middleweight match, there is a lot at stake for the former champion as the winner of the fight would become the new middleweight title contender. After a long reign as the welterweight champion, Usman would definitely cherish dominating the middleweight division. But before that, he would have to first defeat Khamzat Chimaev, a fighter with no losses so far.

Leon Osamor