UFC welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman has retained his title after knocking out his opponent, Jorge Masvidal in the second round in the main event of UFC 261 on Sunday.
The event at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida saw the return of fans to a UFC event in the United States for the first time in more than a year, and Usman treated them to a devastating show of power.
A first-round that did not disappoint the fans had continued with more explosive action in the second.
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The 33-year-old Nigerian moved to 19-1 and recorded a fourth successful defence of his championship by knocking Masvidal unconscious with a right cross just over one minute into the second round.
Usman landed a perfect right hand that took the lights off Masvidal with the Nigerian landing five hammer shots to close up the fight. The knockout came at one minute, two seconds.
The fight is the first UFC card in front of a 15,000 capacity crowd since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down spectator sports in March 2020.
With Sunday’s victory, the Nigerian recorded the second-longest winning streak in UFC history. Earlier, Usman tied with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Jon Jones with 13 straight victories. Anderson Silva has more consecutive wins in UFC history (16).
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Speaking after the fight, Usman expressed;
Jacksonville, Florida, you all said you wanted violence. You’re welcome. No disrespect, thank you to my man Jorge. You elevated me and it has been a while since I have been extremely nervous to fight. He elevated me and made me go to the workshop and I had to sharpen my tools tonight. I am still getting better. The sky is the limit for me as long as I am doing this. I am the pound-for-pound best fighter on the planet right now.
At UFC 251 last year, Usman beat Masvidal via unanimous decision in a fairly one-sided bout.
However, Masvidal came into that fight on just six days’ notice after Usman’s initially scheduled opponent, Gilbert Burns, tested positive for the coronavirus.
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Masvidal is one of the biggest stars on the UFC roster. The Miami native was on a three-fight winning streak before falling to Usman last year and this year.
The 36-year-old has been a pro fighter for almost 18 years but has just recently become one of the most popular MMA athletes in the world.
Watch a video of his knockout moment below;
😤 WHOLE. NOTHA. SAVAGE. 💥
🏆 Kamaru Usman knocked out Jorge Masvidal to retain his UFC welterweight title! 🇳🇬#UFC261pic.twitter.com/Dk69ac9WXI
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) April 25, 2021
