Kamaru Usman claims Conor McGregor turned down title shot, believes Nate Diaz will do the same
Kamaru Usman has claimed that Conor McGregor turned down an opportunity to fight him for the UFC welterweight title and believes that Nate Diaz would do the same.
The Nigerian Nightmare has been the UFC welterweight champion since beating Tyron Woodley for the title in March 2019. During his time as the kingpin of the 170-pound division, Kamaru Usman has often called out MMA megastar Conor McGregor, accusing the Irishman of avoiding a fight against him.
Kamaru Usman has now echoed similar sentiments against McGregor’s longtime rival Nate Diaz. During an interview with ESPN MMA, the 33-year-old was questioned whether a potential fight between him and Nate Diaz could be on the cards if Diaz beats Leon Edwards.
Kamaru Usman responded to this by stating:
“Diaz gets a title shot…According to me, absolutely. You know me. I don’t shy away from any challenge. I’ll take on anybody. According to him, I think that’s the second case to where a fighter just flat out says, ‘You know what? I don’t even want a title shot. I’m good’. You know, I’ve offered it to Conor when Conor was running his mouth that the third belt looked great to him and this and that. And I said, ‘Yo, here. I’m here. I’m available. What date do you wanna do it?’ But he was quiet. He didn’t respond.”
He continued:
“So, you know, that’s the first case where a guy’s just like, ‘You know what? I want none of those problems. I won’t do it’. And I think this (a potential fight with Nate Diaz) will probably be the second case if he was able to get that win. Yeah, I think he would definitely be turning down that title shot.”
When asked once again whether he would be open to fighting Nate Diaz, Kamaru Usman reiterated:
“Absolutely. I want any fight, you know. And a fight like that, these are just; these are fun fights for me now. These are fun fights for me. Like I said, I’m starting to have fun with this. So, these are just fun fights for me. Whether it’s Nate, whether it’s Leon, whether it’s, who else in the division, (Colby) Covington, they’re all fun fights for me now.” (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Kamaru Usman also had words of high praise for Leon Edwards. He pointed out that he had a win over Edwards while crediting him for having improved since their first fight.
Kamaru Usman, Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz are in different places in their respective careers today
Out of the trio of aforementioned fighters - Kamaru Usman, Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz - Usman currently has the highest amount of momentum on his side.
Kamaru Usman hasn’t been defeated since a submission loss in his second MMA fight, the only loss of his MMA career thus far. He also holds the coveted UFC welterweight title. The Nigerian-American MMA stalwart’s last fight was a third-round TKO win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 258 (February 2021).
Kamaru Usman is set to put his UFC welterweight title on the line in a rematch against Jorge Masvidal at UFC 261 on April 24th, 2021. He won their first fight via unanimous decision and has emphasized that he aims to score a stoppage win in the rematch.
Meanwhile, Conor McGregor is coming off the first KO/TKO defeat of his MMA career, having lost via second-round TKO in his rematch against Dustin Poirier at UFC 257 (January 2021). McGregor is set to clash with Poirier in their trilogy fight at UFC 264 on July 10th, 2021.
Nate Diaz’s most recent fight was a third-round TKO loss against Jorge Masvidal in their BMF title fight at UFC 244 (November 2019). Diaz has been booked to return to the octagon against high-ranking UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards. The matchup will be a five-round non-title bout that’ll co-headline UFC 262 on May 15th, 2021.