Kamaru Usman vs Colby Covington: Nigerian Nightmare retains UFC welterweight title

Kamaru Usman vs Colby Covington: Nigerian Nightmare retains UFC welterweight title

Nomso Obiajuru
updated at April 12, 2023 at 7:48 PM

- Kamaru Usman vs Colby Covington ended in favour of the Nigerian Nightmare

- Usman knocked out Covington with 50 seconds remaining in the fifth round

- The victory means Usman has successfully defended his welterweight title for the first time in his career after taking the title away from longtime champion Tyron Woodley in March

Nigerian-American mixed martial artist Kamaru Usman retained his UFC welterweight title in Las Vegas after a hard-fought win against US challenger Colby Covington on Sunday, December 15, knocking him out in the final stages of the fifth round.

Kamaru Usman stopped Colby Covington with 50 seconds remaining in the fifth round (final round) to retain his title.

But it wasn't an easy victory for Usman as he and his challenger engaged in an all-out war for nearly five full rounds before the Nigerian Nightmare finished off his opponent in style.

After an early exchange of blows and kicks, the fight took a turn in favour of the champion in the third round after catching Covington with a strong blow that broke his jaw.

PAY ATTENTION: Become a member of the leading sports Facebook group 'Naija Football Fan Zone'

But the challenger relentlessly continued to fight on and looked like he could secure a win based on the judges' decision.

Covington before the fight had received a video message from the Trump family as they urged him to win the belt.

However, Usman had other plans as he dropped Covington twice in the final minute, then finished the fight with hammer fists on the mat.

He was cheered on by fellow Nigerian UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya as they both celebrated his victory together.

The victory means Usman has successfully defended his welterweight title for the first time in his career.

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that he took the title away from longtime champion Tyron Woodley in March.

The 32-year-old achieved this success in Las Vegas when he defeated defending champion Tyron Woodley after five rounds to become the new champion.

Nigerians react to Anthony Joshua’s win over Ruiz, tip him to crush Wilder, Fury | on Legit tv

Authors
Nomso Obiajuru photo
Nomso Obiajuru
Team Lead- Football
Tags
Kamaru UsmanNigeria