- Welterweight
- Nigeria
« The Nigerian Nightmare »
Kamaru Usman Record, stats and next fight
21-5-0 (W-L-D)
9Wins by knockout
1Wins by submission
3First round finishes
Stats and record
26Pro fights
48%Finish rate
20UFC fights
7Title fights
7Performance bonuses
1Losing streak
Wins by method
Losses by method
Profile
- Age
- 39 years
- Born
- May 11, 1987
- Birthplace
- Auchi, Edo State, Nigeria
- Height
- 6'0" (183 cm)
- Weight
- 185 lbs (84 kg)
- Reach
- 76" (193 cm)
- Stance
- Orthodox
- Division
- Welterweight
- Fighting out of
- Denver, Colorado, U.S.
- Team
- Kill Cliff FC
- Trainer
- Trevor Wittman
- UFC debut
- July 12, 2015
Fight history
-
Loss
vs Dricus du Plessis Bonus
UFC Fight Night: du Plessis vs. Usman · Jul 18, 2026 · Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Joaquin Buckley Bonus
UFC on ESPN: Usman vs. Buckley · Jun 14, 2025 · Atlanta, Georgia, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Loss
UFC 294 · Oct 21, 2023 · Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Method
- Decision (majority)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 5:00
-
Loss
vs Leon Edwards Title
UFC 286 · Mar 18, 2023 · London, England
- Method
- Decision (majority)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Loss
vs Leon Edwards
UFC 278 · Aug 20, 2022 · Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
- Method
- KO (head kick)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 4:04
-
Win
vs Colby Covington Title
UFC 268 · Nov 6, 2021 · New York City, New York, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Jorge Masvidal Title Bonus
UFC 261 · Apr 24, 2021 · Jacksonville, Florida, United States
- Method
- KO (punch)
- Round
- 2
- Time
- 1:02
-
Win
vs Gilbert Burns Title Bonus
UFC 258 · Feb 13, 2021 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 0:34
Show 18 earlier fights
-
Win
vs Jorge Masvidal Title
UFC 251 · Jul 12, 2020 · Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Colby Covington Title Bonus
UFC 245 · Dec 14, 2019 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 4:10
-
Win
vs Tyron Woodley Title
UFC 235 · Mar 2, 2019 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Rafael dos Anjos Bonus
The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters Finale · Nov 30, 2018 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Demian Maia
UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Usman · May 19, 2018 · Santiago, Chile
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 5
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Emil Weber Meek
UFC Fight Night: Stephens vs. Choi · Jan 14, 2018 · St. Louis, Missouri, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Sérgio Moraes
UFC Fight Night: Rockhold vs. Branch · Sep 16, 2017 · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
- Method
- KO (punch)
- Round
- 1
- Time
- 2:48
-
Win
UFC 210 · Apr 8, 2017 · Buffalo, New York, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Warlley Alves
UFC Fight Night: Bader vs. Nogueira 2 · Nov 19, 2016 · São Paulo, Brazil
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Alexander Yakovlev
UFC on Fox: Holm vs. Shevchenko · Jul 23, 2016 · Chicago, Illinois, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Leon Edwards
UFC on Fox: dos Anjos vs. Cowboy 2 · Dec 19, 2015 · Orlando, Florida, United States
- Method
- Decision (unanimous)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Hayder Hassan Bonus
The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Finale · Jul 12, 2015 · Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
- Method
- Submission (arm-triangle choke)
- Round
- 2
- Time
- 1:19
-
Win
vs Marcus Hicks
Legacy FC 33 · Jul 18, 2014 · Allen, Texas, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 2
- Time
- 5:00
-
Win
vs Lenny Lovoto
Legacy FC 30 · Apr 4, 2014 · Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 3
- Time
- 1:04
-
Win
vs Steven Rodriguez
Legacy FC 27 · Jan 31, 2014 · Houston, Texas, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 1
- Time
- 1:31
-
Win
vs Rashid Abdullah
Victory FC 41 · Dec 14, 2013 · Ralston, Nebraska, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 1
- Time
- 3:49
-
Loss
vs Jose Caceres
CFA 11 · May 24, 2013 · Coral Gables, Florida, United States
- Method
- Submission (rear-naked choke)
- Round
- 1
- Time
- 3:47
-
Win
vs David Glover
RFA 5 · Nov 30, 2012 · Kearney, Nebraska, United States
- Method
- TKO (punches)
- Round
- 2
- Time
- 4:50
Analysis
Kamaru Usman ruled the UFC welterweight division from 2019 to 2022, with five title defenses. A wrestler by training and an NCAA champion, he relies on constant pressure and top control, which for years left his opponents without answers.
Background
Born on May 11, 1987 in Auchi, Edo State, Nigeria, Usman grew up in the United States and came up through wrestling. He finished his senior year of high school with a record of fifty-three wins and three losses and a third-place finish at the Texas state championships. In 2010, he became the NCAA Division II champion at 174 pounds, going forty-four wins and one loss that season. He later moved to Denver, Colorado, and joined Kill Cliff FC, where he works on striking with Trevor Wittman and on grappling with Jorge Santiago.
UFC career
Usman won the welterweight title by beating Tyron Woodley, then put together five defenses between 2019 and 2021: Colby Covington by TKO, Jorge Masvidal by unanimous decision, Gilbert Burns by TKO, Masvidal by KO in the rematch, and Covington again by unanimous decision at UFC 268. Four of those nights earned him Performance of the Night, and his first fight with Covington earned Fight of the Night.
His reign ended on August 20, 2022 at UFC 278, when Leon Edwards knocked him out with a head kick in the final round. He lost the trilogy on March 18, 2023 by majority decision at UFC 286, then moved up to middleweight on October 21, 2023 at UFC 294 and lost another majority decision to Khamzat Chimaev. He returned to winning ways on June 14, 2025 against Joaquin Buckley, by unanimous decision. On July 18, 2026, he headlined UFC Fight Night 281 against Dricus Du Plessis and lost by unanimous decision, in a bout that earned the Fight of the Night bonus.
Fighting style
Usman builds his fights on the threat of the takedown. His wrestling forces opponents to defend their legs, which opens up his boxing, sharpened in Denver and noticeably more dangerous from 2020 on: nine of his wins came by strikes. The rest comes from endurance, since eleven of his twenty-one wins went the distance, earned with control against the cage and position after position. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, he fights out of an orthodox stance and rarely hunts for submissions, with only one on his record.
Record and titles
- MMA record: 21 wins, 5 losses
- Wins: 9 by KO or TKO, 1 by submission, 11 by decision
- Losses: 1 by KO, 1 by submission, 3 by decision
- UFC welterweight champion from 2019 to 2022, five successful defenses
- NCAA Division II wrestling champion in 2010, at 174 pounds
- Four Performance of the Night bonuses
- Two Fight of the Night bonuses
Fact sheet
- Full name: Kamarudeen Usman
- Nickname: The Nigerian Nightmare
- Born: May 11, 1987 in Auchi, Edo State, Nigeria
- Height: 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
- Fighting weight: 185 lb (84 kg)
- Reach: 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
- Division: welterweight, with appearances at middleweight since 2023
- Home base: Denver, Colorado, United States
- Team: Kill Cliff FC
- Coaches: Trevor Wittman for striking, Jorge Santiago for grappling
- Core skills: wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
Sources
Data updated on September 28, 2026. Record and measurements cross-checked against official results and Wikipedia. Text written by the MMA Official editorial team.