Jason Burgos
Kamaru Usman revealed this week that his pursuit of getting one more UFC title fight at welterweight has hit a wall named Hunter Campbell.
At 38 years old, the former welterweight king knows he does not have much time left at the highest levels of the sport. That is why he has done all he can over the last eight months to get himself into a championship bout with new welterweight champ and pal Islam Makhachev.
After scoring his first win in almost four years over Joaquin Buckley in June, he doesn’t have the strongest case to get a title opportunity. However, he has tried to leverage his friendship with the Russian and his name value as one of the greatest welterweights of all time to work his way into the fight. However, it doesn’t seem to be working.
During a new edition of his Pound 4 Pound podcast with fellow legend Henry Cejudo, Usman revealed that he has pitched to the company why he feels a fight with Makhachev makes the most sense. However, despite discussions, the former champion claims UFC CBO Hunter Campbell “feels differently” and is not that interested in the matchup.
The comments seem to back up recent rumors that Campbell has taken on a bigger day-to-day role for the UFC than CEO Dana White, including fight contracts.
Kamaru Usman offered fight against Dricus Du Plessis
Along with the update on the lack of progress toward a fight for the welterweight strap, Usman also offered up that Campbell and the UFC countered his pitch with a different fight idea, and at a different weight class. Usman revealed that he was offered a matchup with former middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis.
While Usman isn’t against a clash at 185 pounds, he claims he is only interested in “meaningful” fights that lead to a title opportunity after. The UFC may be unwilling to guarantee a championship bout after a win over DDP.
Usman took a short-notice fight at middleweight in October 2023 against current champion Khamzat Makhachev. He lost the bout by majority decision.
