Nothing popped.
That seems to be the takeaway from the UFC 294 open workouts, which transpired on Wednesday and saw Justin Gaethje working with Kamaru Usman, the latter of whom has a co-main event fight with Khamzat Chimaev booked.
Usman is stepping into the fight on short notice, and as such, the possibility of injury is a valid concern. During Usman’s open workout session, after taking Gaethje down, the former welterweight champ appeared to get up rather slowly, favoring his left knee. In clips posted to social media (h/t MMA Junkie), Gaethje can be heard asking if Usman is okay after the slam. To some, what is heard in response is “no, something popped” — with Gaethje later disputing that interpretation.
“He said I’m good or something like that,” Gaethje wrote on social media. “I thought he hit his head on the mat. I asked him if he hit his head in this clip when we got up and he said ‘no.'”
“He actually said ‘I’m gonna go with Cosmo’ to be exact,” Gaethje later added. When asked by a fan about Usman saying something “popped,” Gathje responded by saying “your mind is playing tricks on you my friend.”
Justin Gaethje took to X to clear up what many have said was Kamaru Usman saying something "popped" when he took Gaethje down at #UFC294 open workouts. #UFC #MMA #KamaruUsman #JustinGaethje pic.twitter.com/96Ug1UVEQD
— Cageside Press (@Cagesidepress) October 18, 2023
Kamaru Usman was a little more heated about talk of a potential knee injury, blasting a Bloody Elbow clip that stated “Kamaru Usman seems to have said something popped” during his open workout. “At what point while I was lightly drilling did you hear me say that to Justin. Stop with the clickbait you idiots.”
This is why no one reads this shitty ass blog. At what point while I was lightly drilling did you hear me say that to Justin. Stop with the clickbait you idiots 🙄🙄
— KAMARU USMAN (@USMAN84kg) October 18, 2023
To be fair to all parties, the audio is very muddled. Usman may not have said it, but it obviously sounds that way to some. Assuming the fight goes ahead, Usman’s knee will be something to keep an eye on.
