In the immediate aftermath of UFC 261, UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman was enjoying the fruits of a promise gone fulfilled.
Following his knockout of Jorge Masvidal after vowing to finish him, Kamaru Usman continues his remarkable run of predictions come true. Mystic Usman has made eerily accurate predictions for matches such as Tyron Woodley, Colby Covington, and now Jorge Masvidal.
Many people doubted that Usman would be able to finish Jorge Masvidal despite the champion’s vow that he would. Masvidal was at the top of that list, with “Gamebred” stating that Usman had no punching power or “meanness” to him. Hindsight aside, the skepticism from the MMA community was more than understandable. After all, no one in the UFC had ever been able to finish Masvidal during his eight-year run in the promotion. And even though Usman has had some very notable finishes as of late, the odds of him being able to stop Masvidal didn’t seem very high. Yet, that’s exactly what happened only one minute into the second round.
Following his latest masterpiece, Usman sat down with reporters at the UFC 261 post-fight press conference. The champion was asked about the blows to Masvidal after he had hit the canvas following the lethal right cross from Usman. Usman then used Masvidal’s own words against him by declaring those shots to be #SuperNecessary.
“Extra shots? What do you mean? Those were extra shots? The ref didn’t pull me off yet, so I keep going until the ref pulls me off,” Usman began. “And, you know, those were super necessary.”
The phrase “super necessary” became a hit phrase associated with Masvidal after he used those words to describe his own follow-up shots to an unconscious Ben Askren at UFC 239. Usman wasn’t finished, though. He also shared with reporters that there was a spiritual ceremony that took place in the main event. Some might describe it as a “baptism.” Here is how the champion described his ceremonial duties.
“I had to go out there and I definitely blessed him. I did. I blessed him,” Usman informed reporters before giving respect where it’s due. “But he pushed me. He motivated me to come out there and do what I did tonight. And I’m just happy, and I’m just blessed.”
That makes two blessed men according to the UFC welterweight champion. The way Usman has been performing lately, his next opponent may not be best described as “blessed,” but rather cursed with the task of becoming the first man in the UFC to escape the clutches of defeat at the hands of The Nigerian Nightmare.
What are your thoughts on Kamaru Usman’s post-fight comments here?