Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is currently on a 2-fight losing streak. After his shocking defeat to Leon Edwards at UFC 278, Usman once again came up short against the same fighter at UFC 286. At the age of 35, fan question if Usman still has the desire and the hunger to compete at a high level or not. However, if Colby Covington is to be believed, age has nothing to do with it.
Kamaru Usman has been exploring other opportunities aside from fighting. The former champ has worked as a fight analyst for several UFC big events. But his biggest achievement outside fighting came in 2022 when Usman bagged a role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Although Kamaru Usman’s role in the Black Panther sequel was limited to a cameo, he did have a speaking line at a pivotal scene in the movie.
Kamaru Usman in #BlackPanther pic.twitter.com/XW83aTc7D8
— schwick (@schwick6) November 12, 2022
At the time of accepting the role, Usman was still the welterweight champion of the world. However, things are now different after two successive losses to Leon, including a KO loss at UFC 278. Hence, Colby Covington came to the conclusion that Usman’s move to Hollywood has distracted him from fighting. So what were Covington’s exact words? Let’s find out!
Colby Covington blames Black Panther 2 for Kamaru Usman losing to Leon Edwards
Colby Covington is a two-time welterweight title challenger and one-time interim welterweight champion. He was also backup for the UFC 286 main event between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards. Hence, Dana White announced Colby as the next challenger for Edwards. During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Covington responded to Leon’s comments on his claim to the title.
In the post-fight press conference, Leon revealed that Covington does not deserve the title shot. Instead, “Rocky” wants to fight Jorge Masividal due to their existing rivalry. In response to that, Colby decided to discredit Leon’s greatest opponent to date, Kamaru Usman. Although the question was not about Usman, Colby still brought up Usman and revealed why Usman was not an elite competitor anymore.
Colby added, “You fought a shell in former self in (kamaru) Usman who obviously was doing too much filming for Wakanda is forever for the Black Panther movie that he wasn’t focused and he is just past the hill. He’s one foot out, one foot in. You see he’s saying in interviews, he wants to retire. So it was the wars that added up from me and good job Leon, you beat Usman. I beat him at Madison Square Garden last November.”
The main event bout at UFC 286 was a close one, but Leon Edwards managed to win over Kamaru Usman. As Colby added in his rant, Usman was talking about retirement even before the event on March 18. However, during his speech after the trilogy bout against Edwards, Usman revealed that he was not going to retire and look to fight very soon.
What do you make of Colby Covington blaming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever for Kamaru Usman losing his way in MMA? Do you think there is any merit to it or Colby was just trying to rub salt in the wounds of his UFC 245 and UFC 268 opponent? Let us know in the comments down below.