Welterweight contender Kamaru Usman was able to keep his undefeated UFC record intact on Sunday night with a unanimous decision win over Emil Meek in St. Louis, Missouri. During his Octagon interview, “The Nigerian Nightmare” said he was only at “30 percent” in this fight.
“Listen, I fought this fight sitting at about 30 percent,” Usman told Paul Felder during his Octagon interview. “Everybody knows what I’m capable of, that was 30 percent right there, and I still dominated a tough so-called Viking. Dominated him, and I was at 30 percent.”
“You know what, I’m the most dominant and most well-rounded welterweight on the planet,” he continued. “Nobody could stop me, and that’s why they’re all afraid to fight me.”
Usman also took aim at controversial welterweight Colby Covington.
“Listen, Colby, you could run, but you can’t hide. The Nigerian Nightmare is looking for you, and I’m gonna find you.”
These statements apparently did not sit well with UFC president Dana White.
“I didn’t love that fight, by the way,” White said Sunday during the FOX Sports 1 post-fight show (via MMA Fighting). “Yeah, he’s a tough guy. Yeah, he can impose his will. But then you don’t jump up and start talking smack like you just knocked somebody or something, and say you only went 30 percent.”
“So what’s that mean? What if you’re on a pay-per-view, you do 60 percent? I mean, it’s one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever heard somebody say. And you’re getting booed out of the arena on top of it.”
Usman then went to explain himself through a couple of tweets he posted afterward.
As of this posting, Usman, now 12-1 with seven wins by stoppage, sits at the number ten spot at the UFC’s official welterweight rankings.