Kamaru Usman Back in Winning Form at UFC Fight Night

Kamaru Usman marked his return to victory on Saturday night at UFC Fight Night in Atlanta, Georgia, clinching a unanimous decision against Joaquin Buckley with scores of 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47.

“The knockouts will come,” Usman remarked after the fight. “I finally got that monkey off my back.”

In the initial rounds of this pivotal welterweight bout, Usman (21-4 MMA) dominated, handing Buckley (21-7 MMA) a shutout as he utilized effective ground-and-pound techniques, significantly outstriking Buckley in key strikes, 16-0.

Buckley started the third round with vigor, but Usman eventually secured a third takedown after four attempts, controlling the fight in the closing moments of the round.

During the fourth round, while both fighters stayed on their feet, Buckley managed to deliver his best combination of the match, although he couldn’t find a way to turn the tide.

In the fifth round, both combatants exchanged shots, but it was too late for Buckley to salvage his six-fight unbeaten streak. This victory marked Usman’s first win since claiming the title in November 2021.

Buckley took his loss gracefully, facing his first defeat at welterweight. “We’re just getting started,” he said confidently. “We’ll be back.”

Former two-time Strawweight champion, Rose Namajunas, also made her mark on the card, achieving a hard-fought unanimous decision victory of 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28 against Miranda Maverick.

Namajunas (15-7 MMA) overcame a challenging moment in Round 2 when she almost got submitted by an arm triangle. She has won three of her last four fights and is aiming for a title in the flyweight division, having previously enjoyed success in strawweight. Meanwhile, Maverick (17-6 MMA) was coming off four straight wins until this setback.

In another fight, Edmen Shabajan nearly finished TUF alum Andre Petroski with a TKO in the third round but won a unanimous decision with scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28. This victory was Shabajan’s first back-to-back win since 2019 and his first decision win since 2018.

Shabajan (15-5 MMA) thoroughly controlled Petroski (13-5 MMA), who has now lost two of his last three bouts.

In a closely contested match, former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt was beaten by unanimous decision, scoring 29-28 across the judges’ cards, against Raoni Barcelos. Barcelos (20-5 MMA) secured his third consecutive win while Garbrandt (14-7 MMA) has now claimed victory only three times out of his last 20 fights.

Barcelos nearly locked in a rear-naked choke in the later stages, but Garbrandt managed to evade it and land some strikes to finish out the fight.

In middleweight action, Mansoor Abdul Malik won a technical decision over Cody Brundage with scores of 30-27, 29-28, and 29-28. Abdul Malik (9-0 MMA) was on track for a quick TKO but suffered an accidental head clash that prompted the judges’ intervention. He climbed to 3-0 in the promotion, while Brundage (11-7 MMA) continues to seek his first consecutive win in nearly three years.

The main card of UFC Atlanta kicked off with Alonzo Menifield achieving a unanimous decision victory against Oumar Sy, with the match scored 29-28 three times. Menifield (17-5-1 MMA) handed Sy (11-1 MMA) his first career loss in MMA.

Looking ahead, the UFC is set to host another fight night next Saturday in Azerbaijan, featuring a light heavyweight non-championship bout between former champion Jamahal Hill and former title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr.