Kamaru Usman won against Joaquin Buckley in their UFC main event fight at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Sunday morning.
Usman earned scores of 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47 from the judges, recording his first win since 2021.
The 38-year-old former UFC welterweight champion scored 49-46, 49-46, 48-47 on all three judges’ scorecards to secure a surprise victory over the on-form challenger.
The victory marked a major comeback for Usman, who had been absent from the octagon for almost two years.
Usman dominated Buckley with takedowns in each of the first four rounds. He maintained top control and landed multiple ground-and-pound strikes during the bout.
The former UFC welterweight champion
edged his opponent with a 137-51 advantage in total strikes and held over 13 minutes of control time throughout the match.
Speaking after the win, Usman said, “I know I’m still able to do this at the highest level. Sometimes when you’re going up against a young, hungry guy like that, very talented, very aggressive, you’ve got to pull out the skills and use your experience — and that’s what I did tonight.”
“I know it’s a running joke, ‘Oh, his knees, his knees.’ Well, I can still do what I do, [and] I could do that to anybody (in the welterweight division), any one of them.”
