NIGERIAN fighter Kamaru Usman will be the headline act of this weekend’s UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) 268, set for the Madison Square Garden in New York, United States of America on Sunday morning.
Usman will defend his title against Colby Covington in a rematch in what is the main fight of the night/morning, while Rose Namajunas takes on Weili Zhang in another title rematch.
The main event between Usman (16-1) and Covington (16-2) is for the UFC welterweight title.
Usman defeated ‘Chaos’ Covington via technical knockout in the fifth round of their epic championship bout in December 2019, and the Nigerian-American has since successfully defended the belt three more times, beating Jorge Masvidal (twice) and Gilbert Burns.
In the build-up to the much-anticipated rematch, Usman has expressed his respect for Covington’s abilities in the Octagon.
“I’m no hater. I give props where props are due,” mixed martial arts champion Usman told UFC reporters.
“I think Colby probably is, I would put him in the top-15 welterweights of all time, as far as fighter-wise and skill-wise, the way that he fights. You may not like him personally, which I really don’t, but as far as skill-wise, he’s a very good fighter. A very, very good fighter.”
In some of the other fights on the night, Frankie Edgar battles Marlon Vera, Shane Burgos faces Billy Quarantillo, and Justin Gaethje takes on Michael Chandler.
