Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman returned to action for the first time since 2023 at UFC Atlanta, where he took on the surging Joaquin Buckley in the night’s main event.
Usman had not been seen since a loss to Khamzat Chimaev, his third straight setback including back-to-back title fight losses to Leon Edwards. Buckley, whose star has shone bright since dropping to 170lbs, entered off a win over Colby Covington.
Buckley was quick to move to center off the opening bell, after an introduction that saw both men pass on touching gloves. Usman, however, was right in on a takedown, landing his first about 40 seconds into the fight. With Buckley against the fence, Usman literally dragged him by the legs away from the cage. The former champ then settled in on top, looking to land shots to the body from half-guard. Usman would spent the remainder of the round in that position, finding space to do damage with punches and elbows and opening up a cut on “Newmansa.”
Round two saw more action on the feet, with Buckley getting time to work in high kicks, lefts, and rights. Usman however exploded into a takedown just under two minutes in, landing it from a good deal out. Again, Usman settled in on top, working the body some more. After an extended layoff, Usman looked as if he hadn’t missed a step. With seconds left in the frame, Usman briefly took mount, though he couldn’t stay there. Regardless, a second strong round from the former champion.
Entering the third round, Joaquin Buckley was in need of a momentum shift. He fired his hands early, and added an outside leg kick, staying mobile the entire time. Usman fired a kick to the body; Buckley connected with a left hand. He’d connect several more times in the first half of the round, until Usman, like clockwork, landed another takedown. Three takedowns, one per round, and Usman had dominated off of each. Though the latest came further into the third round than the first two, the end result was the same. And Joaquin Buckley, bloodied again, struggled to escape.
The championship rounds almost certainly found Buckley down 3-0; he had another extended run on the feet early in round four, the first two minutes being entirely stand-up. He ripped the body with an uppercut and connected more than once, but Usman’s durability was holding up. And again, in the back half of the round, “The Nigerian Nightmare” became Joaquin Buckley’s nightmare, and took the fight back down.
Between rounds, Buckley’s corner told him that they weren’t calling kamikaze, and instead needed him to set something up. Bottom line, however, was that reckless or set up, Buckley needed a finish. Usman, through four rounds, had needed just a single takedown in each to dominate the fight. If he landed one in the fifth, it was all but over.
Buckley came out hot in round five, looking to connect with something, anything. Winging punches. He’d find some success with his left, but Usman’s jab was also effective. This time, however, when the takedown attempt came, Buckley was able to fight it off. Then another! That led to a combination from Buckley, after which Usman drove him into the fence, slowing things down with 90 seconds remaining. Buckley escaped, and lunged in with another combo, a minute now still on the clock. Time was not Buckley’s friend, but he did land a straight left, then tag Usman again! Usman was backpedaling, but time was running down. The horn would sound before he could land a finishing blow, and while he might have won the round, Kamaru Usman had clearly won the fight.
Official Result: Kamaru Usman def. Joaquin Buckley by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)
