UFC 251 Fight Island: Kamaru Usman beats Jorge Masvidal to retain Welterweight Champion title

Pic courtesy: twitter/@ufc

The UFC Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman retained his title after beating Jorge Masvidal via unanimous decision at UFC 251 Fight Island in Abu Dhabi on Sunday (July 12). 

The match ended after five rounds during which Usman did well to control the pace of the bout to register a 50-45, 50-45 and 49-46 win against Masvidal.

"Masvidal is the biggest, baddest dude out there right now. I had to switch gears and prepare for him on a week's notice. ... I had to make a mental shift. I trained for Gilbert. I had a completely different game plan," Usman told UFC play-by-play announcer Jon Anik after the fight.

Notably, the main event in UFC 251 was supposed to be a bout between Usman and Gilbert Burns, but Burns withdrew from the event after testing positive for coronavirus.

UFC president Dana White then started looking for a replacement for Burns and signed in Masvidal for the main event agaisnt Usman.

With this win, Usman now has a professional record of 17 wins and just one defeat, whilst Masvidal has a record of 35 wins and 14 defeats.

"I'm just at a level better. I have more tools in the toolbox. And when I need to pull them out, I can pull them out and use them," Usman said aftre the win.

The 33-year-old Nigerian champion came to Abu Dhabi after a fifth-round TKO over Colby Covington at UFC 245 in December 2019. This was the latest UFC title fight finish ever and Usman's second title defense.