“There’s a blessing in everything that happens to us.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I am what I am. I don’t regret anything.”
― Kamaru Usman
“For what we do training, as a fighter, you have to be able to flip that switch where you turn into that savage, that guy that’s prepared to go to war.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m a good, upstanding guy with moral values and core values.”
― Kamaru Usman
“In my village where I’m from, there’s still not running water everywhere. People are still struggling to get clean water.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I love to study people, and that’s basically what sociology is.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I believe in karma.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I never in my wildest dreams dreamt of being in a position like this, of having a platform like this, where I can really show the world – not just Africa, but the entire world, people in Asia, India, wherever – that your current situation doesn’t have to determine your future.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Fighting is just something that’s gonna open doors for things to come in the future.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I ask for the fights. Sometimes I get them. Sometimes I don’t.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I always envisioned hearing them say, ‘and new,’ and wrapping that belt around me and thinking of all the things I was fighting for.”
― Kamaru Usman
“As an African, there are certain professions your family want you to do or are willing to sign off. Being in the medical professional, as a doctor, pharmacist, a nurse, or being an engineer – those are the only professions allowed!”
― Kamaru Usman
“Once Africans realise we can just fight and get paid for it, we can do that and still provide for ourselves and our families and countries? We’re going to flood the market.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I have an excellent team, a great manager, and we’re going to put something together: we’re going to start a foundation, and we’re going to change lives.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Nothing but respect for Demian Maia.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I want Dong Hyun Kim. He’s a grappler, he’s a strong stand-up fighter, and I think that would be a great fight. I think I beat him every and anywhere.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Can’t nobody handle me.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m not the ugliest guy in the world.”
― Kamaru Usman
“You can’t say that I don’t have the skills. You can’t say that. I have the skills.”
― Kamaru Usman
“You can’t say I don’t have the confidence, because I have that.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I believe that I’m not just a fighter in this game; I love to study the sport. And in studying the sport, I believe I have a good eye for the sport, and I’m able to talk about the sport.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I believe that, just naturally, I’m a very soft-spoken person. Everyone tells me that on a daily basis – ‘Speak up, we can’t hear you,’ or ‘Elaborate on this.’ But that’s just how I am.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I can’t fight forever. Commentating is one of those major things that I definitely feel I want to do and can do.”
― Kamaru Usman
“The fight game has changed to where it’s no longer the toughest is fighting the toughest to be the best on the planet.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Fighters no longer manage themselves: they have a whole team behind them. A fighter has a manager, an agent, a Hollywood agent – they got this and that. And on top of that, they’ve got their whole team of coaches.”
― Kamaru Usman
“There comes a time in our careers that you get that one guy. That guy that just makes your blood boil. That really pulls the savage out of you.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I believe the UFC was sold based on their performance and the services they’ve provided, so if a company comes in and buys it, they just bought the blueprints of their success. I believe that WME-IMG bought the UFC because of its structure and success.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m a people watcher, and I love to listen.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I think it’s great to have USADA come in and clean up the sport, because what I don’t want to do is train my butt off for 10 weeks to prepare for a fight for a limited amount of money to feed my family, then get out there with a guy that maybe put in 3 weeks training and cheated.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I would love to fight a lot more often, but of course it’s the UFC, and whenever they feel that they have an opening, then they can put us in there because there’s so many fighters.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When you’re doing something like wrestling – wrestling is one of the toughest and hardest martial arts to learn – but it’s still a form of martial arts. It’s still controlled.”
― Kamaru Usman
“USADA is wonderful, I think they’re doing a remarkable job, and they do a remarkable job all around the world.”
― Kamaru Usman
“That’s why I think that I have a big advantage, because I work on my striking a ton, but I don’t forget about my wrestling, what brought me to the dance.”
― Kamaru Usman
“At the end of the day, I’m a professional.”
― Kamaru Usman
“One thing about me is that my parents didn’t force me to be an athlete.”
― Kamaru Usman
“My parents didn’t want me to do this. My dad, when I told him I wanted to wrestle, he told me no, if you’re going to play any sports, play baseball.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m a realist.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m the type of person who’s never said never.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’ve already proved I have what it takes to be the champion. I’m right there.”
― Kamaru Usman
“A lot of people forget that Americans are immigrants. People are forgetting that, to where people have this attitude, ‘We’re Americans, go back to your country. Go back. This is a free country.’ I always heard that growing up. I always heard that.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When you go to hotels, who are the maids who work at most of those hotels? A lot of them are immigrants. We take pride in that because we’re in a better place and want to provide for our families.”
― Kamaru Usman
“My mind is strong.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Once I go into these fights, and we have to go through the ringer to prepare for them, and we know I’m not 100 percent going in, winning is the most important thing, and dominating is the most important thing, and that’s what we’ve been doing.”
― Kamaru Usman
“It’s one thing to get somebody down on the ground, but it’s another thing to finish him there.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When it comes down to digging, can’t nobody dig as hard as I can dig.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Listen, anybody can put their head down and throw a haymaker and pray and hope it lands.”
― Kamaru Usman
“You can’t out-wrestle me. You can’t out-strike me. You don’t have more power than me.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When I eventually get my hands on Covington, its more than just a fight: it symbolizes so many other things. It symbolizes the attitude toward immigrants in this country and around the world.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I will be unhappy if RDA ducks me. I will be very unhappy.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I think Mike Perry is a guy the fans actually care about.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I study this sport.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Not everybody out here trains with me; not everybody knows what I’m capable of. My coaches know what I’m capable of, my training partners know what I’m capable of, and I know what I’m capable of.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Once you have an opponent in your mind that you’re preparing for, you’re working on specifics, and you get guys in to mimic what they do.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Nobody – nobody – in my division wants to fight me, because I am the hardest fight for anybody.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m good everywhere. I can defend the takedowns. I can get a guy down if I want them. I can keep it standing and strike. I can do it all.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Demian Maia, he’s a legend. He’s a veteran in the game. He knows how to fight. He’s been through so many five-round fights. He’s headlined a lot of cards, fought Anderson Silva for the title, fought Tyron Woodley for the title. He’s a veteran, he knows how to fight, and he’s always training. He’s a jiu-jitsu wizard.”
― Kamaru Usman
“My thing is, if you’re going to talk online, if you’re going to come at me with a certain energy, when you see me on-site, keep that certain energy. That’s it. That’s it. That’s all I am.”
― Kamaru Usman
“You never say never. That’s one of the lessons I’ve learned.”
― Kamaru Usman
“It’s my job to show up, make weight, and prepare to be a world champion if that opportunity presents itself.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Crazy things happen in this sport, and you have to be ready. And for me, luck is when preparation meets opportunity.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m not the guy to call the cops.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I fractured my left foot.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I work with one of the best striking coaches in the world, Henri Hooft.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Being able to open up and use my kick would make me so much more dangerous. It wouldn’t even be fair to use some of the weapons that we work on.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I believe in fate.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I lived with my grandmother for a year when I was very young, and even to this day, when I tell my mother events that took place, she can’t believe that I can recall that far.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I recall the hard work that my family went through just to continue to live the lifestyle that we were living, which wasn’t by any means a great lifestyle.”
― Kamaru Usman
“My body knows my limits.”
― Kamaru Usman
“They say the body is 70 percent water, and you need that water for a reason.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I got into this sport to make a statement.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m a man on a mission.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’m not just a grappler.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Yes, I came into this sport as just a grappler, but the more I learn, the more it shines in my fights.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Fans want to see a fight and be entertained.”
― Kamaru Usman
“If fans are willing to pay to see you fight, the promoter is happy.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Can anyone tell me what Jon Jones was ranked when he fought for the UFC title? No one knows. I believe, in that aspect, it was easier to get fights back then. It wasn’t, ‘What’s this guy ranked?’ You fought, made your money, and went home.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I believe, if I beat Demian Maia, it’s going to be very hard for the other top guys to go around me.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Anybody in that welterweight division that think they want this, you know you don’t, because I’m a problem. I’m a problem in this division.”
― Kamaru Usman
“A lot of people are still suffering from water-borne diseases… We want to create something where we can make life better for everyone.”
― Kamaru Usman
“At the end of the day, my job is to win in impressive fashion.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I’d like to think I’m a hybrid to where, if you had to pick, where would you say I’m weak? I can outwrestle guys; I can outgrapple guys. I can put your lights out, and I have a gas tank for days. I can do it all.”
― Kamaru Usman
“There was a time when guys just had a specialty, like boxer or wrestler or jiujitsu guy. Then came guys who could blend taking you down with also being able to kick your head off.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Some guys just like being a fighter, and they live in that world, but I got into this to be champion.”
― Kamaru Usman
“The goal of this, I would like to think, for everybody, is to become champion.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I would say my childhood was amazing.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Wrestling definitely shaped the direction of my life because, before that, I wanted to fit in so much. I wanted to be one of the cool cats. I was friends with the captain of the football team because he had all the chicks. I wanted to be that guy.”
― Kamaru Usman
“In other countries, being from somewhere else is celebrated. But not in America.”
― Kamaru Usman
“You don’t ever want an African father to come to your school looking for you.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When I first got into the sport, or first got into athletics, I always felt that sense of responsibility that I was destined for something bigger, that I was going to do something major.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When you start out doing something, you never wonder how big is this going to be, or how will I be remembered, or will people even care for me.”
― Kamaru Usman
“We never complained, ‘We don’t have this or that.’ Even though we had to plant certain things and harvest them to be able to eat, we never complained.”
― Kamaru Usman
“We didn’t have running water. We had to get water from wells, and there was a stint where I lived with my grandma where we had to get water, bring it over to the house. You had to boil the water because you never knew what parasites were in the water.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When I fought in The Ultimate Fighter Finale, I had microfracture surgery, and that’s usually eight month’s recovery turnaround. I had to fight three months after that, and I fought three months after that. And I had to train through that with that.”
― Kamaru Usman
“One of the hardest parts of this game, and what I don’t think people understand, is the mental side of it. They think, ‘Oh, he’s a big, stronger guy.’ But let me tell you, and I believe this without question: It’s not always the biggest, strongest, meanest, toughest-looking who gets the job done.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Being a great physical athlete is wonderful, and you need it at this level to be able to train and prepare accordingly. But the closer it comes time to perform, the ratio switches. When you’re in camp, it’s 90 percent physical and 10 percent mental. But as you get to fight night, it’s the opposite.”
― Kamaru Usman
“When you aren’t able to do what makes you dominant, what separates you from the pack, it can throw your mind off.”
― Kamaru Usman
“Once you sign a contract that states that you’re going to have to fight this other man for a substantial amount of money, things change psychologically.”
― Kamaru Usman
“You don’t have to be outlandish and saying crazy things and get out of yourself to get headlines or attention.”
― Kamaru Usman
“I actually care about things, and I care about people.”
― Kamaru Usman
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