Usman hints at interest in Makhachev if he gets past Buckley at UFC Atlanta

The welterweight division is arguably the UFC’s most compelling weight class at present time and Fight Night action this weekend will be headlined by a former champion returning to take on a red-hot rising contender.

Kamaru Usman is set to step back into the Octagon following a lengthy layoff against streaking knockout artist Joaquin Buckley as the UFC returns to Atlanta for the first time in more than six years.

Buckley had a decent run as an undersized middleweight from 2019 through 2022 before his career underwent a major upswing when he decided to drop down a weight class.

The 31-year-old from St. Louis moved down from 185 pounds to the 170-pound division in 2023 and has since gone on to win six consecutive fights, with each matchup getting progressively more daunting along the way.

Buckley earned four performance bonuses at middleweight, including one for his epic highlight knockout of Impa Kasanganay, and he even went the distance with Nassourdine Imavov, who’s nearing a middleweight title shot after his TKO win over Israel Adesanya earlier this year.

During his current six-fight streak, Buckley has four stoppage wins, with his two most recent victories being over multiple-time title challengers.

Buckley put Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson away with a leaping right hook knockout in October at UFC 307. Following a quick turnaround and a relatively late-notice opponent switch, Buckley had a dominant showing against Colby Covington in December in what was Buckley’s first UFC main event spot.

After bloodying the one-time interim champion and winning the first two rounds on all judges’ scorecards, the fight was called off late in the third by the cageside physician after a pause in the action due to a deep cut over Covington’s right eyebrow.

Not only did Buckley outclass Covington in the striking department that night, he also showed improved grappling defence, adequate counter wrestling and effectively used the cage to wall-walk back to his feet on multiple occasions.

That win over Covington also served as a solid litmus test for how Buckley could conceivably do against someone like Usman, who had two memorable wins over Covington during his 2.5-year run as champ. 

Usman turned 38 in May and is coming off three consecutive losses. However, he has used his time away from the cage to mend some lingering injuries and get refreshed. He also started a popular podcast called Pound 4 Pound with Kamaru & Henry alongside fellow former UFC champ Henry Cejudo.

Usman has not gotten his hand raised since having his 19-fight winning streak snapped by Leon Edwards nearly three years ago.

Edwards landed his infamous last-minute head kick at UFC 278 that shook up the welterweight division. Usman then lost the immediate rematch seven months later in a competitive five-round majority decision at UFC 286.

Usman’s most recent outing was a valiant short-notice effort up a weight class at UFC 294 against undefeated Khamzat Chimaev, who’s next in line to fight Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight title.

That three-round majority loss to Chimaev was roughly 20 months ago.

“When you fight so frequently like I did for 10 years, it starts to affect the body quite a bit and so that time gives you some time to really work on some of those lingering things that have been lingering for a while, or correct some major things that you need to correct,” Usman told Sportsnet’s Aaron Bronsteter this week.

Usman, who notoriously has dealt with knee issues for years, added that he has enjoyed watching the division progress and improve during his time away.

In addition to Buckley moving into the top 10, the division also boasts the UFC’s youngest active champion in Jack Della Maddalena, who defeated Belal Muhammad one month ago in Montreal to win the title, plus impressive contenders such as Sean Brady, Shavkat Rakhmonov, Ian Machado Garry and Michael Morales, none of whom have competed for a UFC title to date.

There’s also Michael “Venom” Page, Carlos Prates and a former middleweight opponent of Buckley’s, Kevin Holland, who looks reinvigorated since moving back down to the 170-pound ranks and had a big win this past weekend at UFC 316.

That’s not to mention the addition of Islam Makhachev, who announced in May that he was moving up from 155 to 170 pounds and would be vacating his lightweight title to pursue a second gold belt in a new division.

“I love Islam moving into the division,” Usman said. “It gives it some more life. It’s historically been one of the most competitive divisions for a long, long time and for a reason. … Buckley’s done a great job with what he’s been presented and has put himself in a position to earn a fight like this (weekend’s main event), which I’m appreciative of. It’s going to be a great one.” 

Usman, who was once situated at the top of the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings, also intimated that there’s a world where if he can get past Buckley, he’d be open to a welterweight matchup with Makhachev, the current No. 1-ranked P4P talent on the UFC roster.

While the UFC has yet to confirm the next welterweight title matchup, presumably Makhachev will challenge Della Maddalena later this year.

Meanwhile, Saturday marks Usman’s first non-PPV appearance since 2018 before he became champion.

Usman is still the No. 5-ranked contender in the 170-pound division despite his losing streak, while Buckley sits at No. 7, but that is not reflective of each fighter’s current standing in the division.

Buckley is rightfully a heavy betting favourite entering the weekend with Usman listed as a plus-220 underdog and Buckley roughly minus-278 chalk, according to BetMGM.

This weekend will be the fifth time the UFC has hosted an event in Atlanta and the first since UFC 236, when Dustin Poirier and Max Holloway met in the second fight of their soon-to-be trilogy — so fans at the State Farm Arena in Georgia should be lively.

It also marks the start of a two-month stretch during which the UFC isn’t hosting any Fight Night cards at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Apex cards have served their purpose in the past — and it’s an ideal venue for Dana White’s Contender Series — but most fighters and the fans who support them have gotten tired of the sheer frequency of them.

Usman vs. Buckley and the entire UFC Atlanta lineup deserve a crowd, as Saturday’s 13-bout event also features former champions Rose Namajunas and Cody Garbrandt, plus a slew of ascending talents.

Projected bout order for UFC Atlanta below:

— Kamaru Usman vs. Joaquin Buckley

— Rose Namajunas vs. Miranda Maverick

— Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Andre Petroski

— Cody Garbrandt vs. Raoni Barcelos

— Mansur Abdul-Malik vs. Cody Brundage

— Alonzo Menifield vs. Oumar Sy

— Paul Craig vs. Rodolfo Bellato

— Michael Chiesa vs. Court McGee

— Malcolm Wellmaker vs. Kris Moutinho

— Cody Durden vs. Jose Ochoa

— Ricky Simon vs. Cameron Smotherman

— Philip Rowe vs. Ange Loosa

— Jamey-Lyn Horth vs. Vanessa Demopoulos