How long was Kamaru Usman out for after Leon Edwards' head kick? The former champ admits
Kamaru Usman has reflected on Leon Edwards' stunning head kick that saw him snatch the welterweight championship in the final moments of their second fight.
At UFC 278, Usman headed into the bout as the heavy favorite due to his dominance as the 170lb champ and already held a win over 'Rocky'. For Edwards, it was his first chance at UFC gold.
After a strong start from the British fighter, who even took the 'The Nigerian Nightmare' down, Usman returned to form by using his wrestling to dominate the next three rounds of the fight. Heading into the fifth round and up on the judge's scorecard, the Nigerian-born fighter only needed to survive the rest of the match, but Leon Edwards remained patient and landed one of the most infamous knockouts in UFC history.
"𝘽𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙚, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙡..."
INCREDIBLE footage of Leon Edwards' team drilling THAT head kick KO 🤯💥 https://t.co/iZ7QE4Wpdc
Now, with the pair set to meet for a third time at UFC 286 this weekend, Kamaru Usman has been discussing his loss to Edwards with Michael Bisping. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' detailed his experience after being knocked out for the first time in his career and admitted he didn't remember the kick until he was in the ambulance:
"It's weird because it's now. Obviously you don't remember the kick, boom. I watch it and I'm in the cage and coherent, but I don't remember really coming around until I was in the ambulance, which was probably seven minutes after."
'If I'm in the ambulance, something bad has happened' 😂
@bisping and @USMAN84kg are a touch of class 🙌
#UFC286 | Saturday, 7PM | BT Sport Box Office https://t.co/LLRmasnPYq
Kamaru Usman could be held back by KO loss, says Jack Shore
UFC featherweight Jack Shore has weighed in on UFC 286's main event this weekend. The Welsh prospect also features on the card and is set to face Makwan Amirkhani in the prelims.
Shore sat down with Sportskeeda MMA's Andrew Whitelaw to discuss his upcoming fight as well as UFC 286's main event. According to 'Tank', Kamaru Usman will be under more pressure this time out due to suffering a brutal head kick KO at the hands of Leon Edwards. The 28-year-old has also given the nod to Edwards to retain the title as he's fighting on home soil:
"Now that he has scored that knockout, roles have switched. There's no altitude over here. I think the pressure is probably gonna be on Usman. You know, as good as Usman is, you can't tell me that knockout five or six months ago, isn't in the back of his head. So yeah, I think he's gonna do it, I hope he does it."
Catch the full interview here (3:40):