"I gave him too much respect" - Kamaru Usman breaks down how grappling exchanges with Khamzat Chimaev unfolded at UFC 294
At UFC 294, Khamzat Chimaev edged out former welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman via a hard-fought majority decision in a middleweight contest. Surprisingly, the Chechen-born fighter dominated Usman whenever the fight went to the ground.
'Borz' started the fight in his usual fashion, employing a grappling-heavy game plan and hunting for an early submission. However, the former pound-for-pound king thwarted numerous submission attempts.
In a recent interview on his YouTube channel, 'The Nigerian Nightmare' stated that the grappling exchanges would've been much closer had he not given 'Borz' the respect he did:
"He grabbed [me] and I couldn't defend my knee. He was strong. I gave him too much respect in there. I'm like, he's strong, but I've felt strong guys before. I'm like... I'm stronger than him... I gave him too much early, mentally. And then I was trying to catch up, trying to catch up."
Catch Kamaru Usman's comments below (10:08):
According to Usman, he could've won if the fight was five rounds instead of three. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' believes he was in complete control by the end of the bout.
Judging by the official scorecards, Usman is not far off. Two of the three judges scored the final round a 10-9 in his favor.
With the win against Kamaru Usman, Khamzat Chimaev is next in line for a middleweight title shot against Sean Strickland.
Kamaru Usman explains how lack of preparation affected him against Khamzat Chimaev
Very few would have predicted Khamzat Chimaev to dominate Kamaru Usman on the ground the way he did. Usman believes there is a reason as to why the grappling exchanges were so one-sided.
During an interview with Megan Olivi backstage at UFC 294, an emotional Usman pointed out the short-notice nature of the fight as a reason for his display on the ground.
According to 'The Nigerian Nightmare', a full-fledged camp would've benefited him greatly in the fight:
"It's miscalculations for me... That's part of [the fight] camp... I'm a wrestler... I really love to put time into it in camp and really prepare for those positions... I didn't get the time to really put the grappling into [the camp] to be able to stop those takedowns. I don't give up positions like that, and that's the part that I'm mostly disappointed about."
Catch Kamaru Usman's comments below (1:53):