"You leave when you want to leave"- Kamaru Usman believes Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre were right to retire at the top of their careers
Kamaru Usman praised the way Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre called time on their careers inside the octagon.
While in conversation with the media at the UFC 268 pre-fight press conference, Kamaru Usman touched upon his retirement from the sport. He also addressed the problem of fans throwing shade at fighters for retiring at the top of their game.
"Basically, all you guys want to see is me continue to be successful until I'm not successful. Then you guys can put that stamp on it and say, 'Oh, he's washed up. He needs to leave.' I want to do it on my own time. Like Khabib. Even Georges St-Pierre. That's how you do it. You leave when you want to leave. You don't let the sport retire you," admitted Kamaru Usman.
Watch Kamaru Usman address the media below:
When Kamaru Usman talked about his retirement in detail
Ever since Kamaru Usman ascended to the top of the food chain in the UFC's 170lbs division, he has only gone from strength to strength.
Having beaten everyone in his path, Usman is currently lapping fighters in the division. He previously echoed the same sentiment while in conversation with MMA Fighting.
"I'm just so far ahead of these guys that I'm coming back around and I'm lapping them now. So, talking to some of my mentors, and some of the greatest that have done this, what they're telling me at some point it's going to start, that waking up in the morning and going to the gym to put in a day's work is going to start to get heavier and heavier when nothing really motivates me like that anymore," said Kamaru Usman.
Kamaru Usman has revealed that he is open to the prospect of fighting Colby Covington for the third time even if he walks out of UFC 268 with the championship belt slung over his shoulder.
Kamaru Usman likes the idea of a third Colby Covington fight even if he goes 2-0 in their series on Saturday. 🤑
#UFC268 | Full video: bit.ly/3wkrLs0 https://t.co/aBOgCeL3u1
This rules out the possibility of Kamaru Usman retiring anytime soon. However, considering the fickle nature of the game, one can never really be certain of what will come next.
'The Nigerian Nightmare' has also expressed his desire to step into the squared circle against Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez. Usman wants to attempt a first-ever P4P king vs. P4P king matchup in Canelo's domain of boxing.