“It’s sad to watch” - Emotional Kamaru Usman chokes back tears in interview after UFC 294 loss, leaves fans heartbroken
Kamaru Usman suffered his third consecutive career defeat in the middleweight bout against Khamzat Chimaev in the co-main event at UFC 294 on Saturday night.
'The Nigerian Nightmare,' with only 10 days' notice, replaced Paulo Costa after the Brazilian had undergone consecutive elbow surgeries just before the fight. Competing on short notice, the former UFC welterweight champion not only performed admirably in a different weight class but also against one of the sport's most intimidating opponents.
However, when it came to grappling, Khamzat Chimaev's skills shone, earning him two scores of 29-27 for his early ground control of Kamaru Usman. One judge scored it as a draw, 28-28, likely in recognition of Usman's late resurgence.
During a backstage post-fight interview with Megan Olivi, Kamaru Usman appeared emotional and had difficulty expressing himself after his loss.
Check out the interview below:
Fans promptly responded to Usman's display of emotion with a variety of heartfelt reactions.
One fan wrote:
"It’s sad to watch Usman losing"
Another wrote:
"Respect. He's a great guy."
Check out some more reactions below:
"Nothing to hang your head about @USMAN84kg You’re one of the greatest to ever do it and this loss was only on 11 days' notice. You still are and always will be one of the greats."
"Wild to think that Usman went from almost breaking Anderson’s win streak to a three fight skid"
"Still got a lot of respect for him taking the fight in short notice. Keep your head up champ!"
Prior to his back-to-back defeats against the current welterweight champion, Leon Edwards, Kamaru Usman had enjoyed an impressive 19-fight win streak in his MMA career. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' also successfully defended his 170-pound title five times.