Can Kamaru Usman match up with the new generation welterweights - ESPN

When Kamaru Usman and Joaquin Buckley first squared off this week, ahead of their welterweight clash at UFC Fight Night inside Atlanta's State Farm Arena (10 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+; prelims at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+), the 31-year-old contender had a question for the 38-year-old former champion.

«How's it feel going up against the new gen?» Buckley asked.

Buckley's job is to fight, of course, but in that moment, he directly addressed the most pressing topic of this entire event to the only person holding the answer.

Nearing 40 and more than three years removed from his last win, what does Usman have left? Can he still be a factor in the 170-pound title picture? Or is he about to become cannon fodder for someone like Buckley, who enters the weekend on a six-fight winning streak and who publicly called for this specific matchup at the end of last year?

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Usman, who hasn't fought since October 2023, declined to respond to Buckley's probe. When asked about it later, he said, «I'm just f---ing tired. Why do I need to be talking? On Saturday, we're going to be locked in [the Octagon], and that's when I'm going to do the talking.»

Three years ago, Usman was a UFC champion and widely considered the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He suffered a Hail Mary, head kick knockout in the final minute of a five-round title fight against Leon Edwards on Aug. 20, 2022, and has struggled to find his footing since. He lost to Edwards in an immediate rematch in March 2023 then came up short in a short notice fight against Khamzat Chimaev that October.

He has been sidelined since, saying he took time to focus on nonfighting aspects of his life and «little injuries that were nagging» while he was an active