UFC Fight Night 281: Kamaru Usman full post-fight interview

Just want your overall opinions on the fight. I know obviously you were not happy with hearing the 50-45 scorecard but just wanted to get your overall thoughts on how the how the fight went. Yeah it's um you know it's tough it's it's hard to be on this side of it and I'm not used to being on this side so it's a tough one but yeah I hate to even bring up hearing that score or dealing with the score because that's one thing that I kind of patterned myself is I never care about the score because I'm dominating and unfortunately you know now I'm on the end tonight I was on the end of you know hearing the score and yeah I didn't like it but it is what it is I just couldn't get necessarily get going he was big strong he's rangy you know so it was kind of it was a little tough to get going I took kind of like a thumb punch in the eye early on and that kind of blurred the vision a bit but you know no excuses it is what it is I was actually about to ask that because it was that one of those weird it's kind of a punch but it also looks like the thumb went in the eye at the same time how compromised did that make you it was pretty comfortable like I said he's a big boy and you know when you start seeing two of the big boys and he's got kind of like I said it's a weird rangy shot so it's kind of a little delayed to get out of the way of those shots you know seeing them but you know no excuses it's tough to be on this side I'm not used to be on this side so yeah kind of sucks did his game plan at all surprise you you know typically he's a let's say unorthodox like with a lot of his blitzing and everything and tonight he seemed a bit more reserved and not trying to run forward as much maybe because of the wrestling uh did that surprise you at all um no I don't think it's I don't want to say it surprised me I think it's just me my ability to do what I want kind of surprised me because like I said each and every fight we're dealing with something but you guys never hear of it once especially with me because I come out here and I'm you know most of the time I'm victorious so you never really hear about what you're dealing with coming in but you know when you're dealing with something and it kind of hinders you and your ability to go out and do exactly what you want to do or fight the way that you you know you can fight you know it kind of sucks a bit but yeah I think you know he was smart enough to understand that if you came forward I'm the type of guy that will put you on your butt so I think he he was kind of you know doing a good job of not running forward with the blitz and then you know I think you're probably getting a little bit of flack online about you know your recent stretch but the reality is your two fights at middleweight were against Shumayev and DDP two former champions obviously both were close or at least the Shumayev fight was close and then you had moments tonight you said you wanted to go where the opportunity exists do you feel better at 185 or are you happy to go back down to 170? Like I said it doesn't matter I can make both it's not it's not a yeah 170 is a cut but it's at the end of the day I'm not the biggest welterweight so you know it is what it is you deal with it whether if there's opportunities there I'm going to go there the opportunities up here I'm going to stay here so there's really no it doesn't matter you know it's just it sucks that I wasn't victorious tonight because we're having a complete conversation different conversation had I went out and been able to execute the way that I wanted so I guess this is my time of not being able to execute like I've done in most guys. And obviously you have to heal up a little bit but you know the thing over the past couple years is you've only been able to get one or two fights a year you know at 39 how active are you wanting to be obviously you're not hanging it up but over the next year or so how active do you want to be in there? I would like to be active but like I said it's it's not one of those I'm not one of these guys that's just going to stick around here just for a fight like I can't do anything else I can you know I've got a family at home and you know I got every time I come in here I represent not just myself I represent my coaches I represent my team I represent my training partners and my family so I want to do that in the best way possible so I'm not one of these guys that's just going to stick around just to come in here and and fight and take lumps you know so it just if the opportunity is there and it presents itself I would love to get in here regularly but you know we've got to heal up some things and and really do some work with the coaches. Thanks Kamaru. Thank you. Kamaru let's look around the division at welterweight as well as middleweight are there any names that really come to mind as far as lining up your next opponent obviously this was a number one contenders fight you hope to have another in your future? Yeah I mean it's that's a tough one to say because uh all of my focus was on this one and unfortunately I'm having to sit here and have a conversation with you guys when you know this is unfamiliar territory for me but uh I don't know I just go back and just kind of relax and I'll talk with my team management coaches and we'll see where there's next opportunities that listen opportunities always come up like taking on Hamza Chamaev on eight seven eight days or whatever notice that was opportunity came up Masvidal on six days notice opportunity came up and there's been a couple of little ones that didn't necessarily materialize that I've kind of almost jumped in line for so opportunities always come up and look Michael Bisping was middleweight champion of the world let's not forget that opportunity came up he jumped on it he was a middleweight champion so yeah. Kamaru you're known as a 25 minute fighter a five round fighter you could say you have some of the best cardio in UFC history but going into your next fight do you think it's going to be a point of emphasis to be a little bit more aggressive early on? Absolutely I've always kind of been a slow starter I hate to even say that so I try to get in the first round or two in the back I try to really get it out and unfortunately I couldn't do that tonight and well I tried but I went in there like I said you take that kind of weird thumb punch in the eye and it kind of just you know just wasn't my night. Yeah in the fourth or fifth round you looked pretty fresh still I mean maybe even more than DDP towards the end what was your mindset towards the end was it really to finish him? Yeah of course I wanted to finish like I said I was just a little off the time it was an off night you know my timing was off my shots were off I kind of got a little loopy in there I don't know when it sucks because you know the coaches put a lot of time in my striking coaches Henry and Trevor and making sure that I'm able to effectively do what I want to do so unfortunately I didn't represent that tonight so. Islam Makisev obviously you're rumored to fight him at some point let's say he loses potentially next month is that still a fight you potentially? I don't know I don't think Islam I hope he doesn't lose but you know that's not really something I'm thinking about right now right now just kind of want to you know heal up like I hate to even say it heal up but heal up and and we'll see what's next. There's already some talk about Dreikis' game plan against you it seemed like he went to that high kick a lot and he he commended you for your defense of it and looked like maybe it was frustrating you a little bit that it it kept he kept coming is that the truth or just the way it goes? I just no I knew he was going to be kicking and that's fine I just didn't execute I I knew kind of everything he was gonna be doing nothing really surprised me I think it was just me overcoming whatever I was dealing with going in and trying to execute like I've done so many other times and tonight I just couldn't do that. You said no excuses but you you keep saying whatever you're dealing with were you dealing with something coming in? Oh I'm dealing with something every time most fighters are dealing with something all the time and we overcome it and most of my career deal with something you overcome it you go out there and you get the dub and you guys never hear of it just like you won't hear of this one. I'll go one more uh just kind of give a little bit more thought on Justin Gaethje being here in attendance tonight and supporting you uh here in OKC and your thoughts on he now being the champion at lightweight and is there a fight that you would like to see Justin take next? Well I mean for unfortunately I still have to look down when I talk to Justin because you know he's a world champion now so I can't make eye contact with him and unfortunately I was you know not victorious tonight so I have to live that more you know but um no Justin right now is I call him Captain America. I mean I think everyone else in here would agree that he is Captain America right now. I would have loved to have seen that last week materialize and and see what because I think right there him and Conor that that that sells itself you know so you know for for now I just think it has to make sense for him it has to make sense Justin is in a position to where you know what really if it doesn't make sense then what's the point of doing it he's done everything there is to do in the sport right now so you know I call him the most decorated for a and damn it I can't look him in the eye still that's it all right thank you guys