"Bro scared of Dana white, avoided Francis Ngannou," "Feels like a shot at Izzy" - Fans can’t believe Kamaru Usman’s UFC inspired street-fight picks

Francis Ngannou (left) snubbed on Kamaru Usman
Francis Ngannou (left) snubbed on Kamaru Usman's (middle) list, Israel Adesanya (right) also fails to make the cut. [Images courtesy: Getty Images]

Hypothetical street fight lists have long been a popular question posed to UFC fighters, and Kamaru Usman's latest UFC-inspired list has got the MMA fandom talking.

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During the recently concluded UFC 321 Q&A, a fan asked the former welterweight champion to pick a three-fighter dream team for a street fight featuring UFC stars.

'The Nigerian Nightmare' named heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall first, snubbing friend and former champion Francis Ngannou, then went down weight classes to make two more picks.

Light-heavyweight kingpin Alex Pereira was his second pick. Interestingly, for his third choice, this time a middleweight, Usman named Nassourdine Imavov, who was also part of the Q&A panel, and not his fellow Nigeria-born brethren, Israel Adesanya.

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Check out Kamaru Usman's street fight dream team below:

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Suffice it to say, fight fans were far from cordial while reacting to the list.

@KimJongUnthe wrote:

"Bro scared of Dana white, avoided @francis_ngannou"

@rRazed_ commented:

"Feels like a shot at Izzy. [Adesanya]"

@Yooo1241184 opined:

"@stylebender that’s a fake a** friend."

@menacemma_ chimed in:

"Usman picking Aspinall, Pereira, and Imavov for a street squad? Smart picks. One heavyweight tank and two killers who don't mind getting bloody."
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Check out a few more responses below:

Screenshots courtesy: @MMAFighting on X
Screenshots courtesy: @MMAFighting on X

Usman last fought at UFC Atlanta in June, where he broke a three-fight skid with a unanimous decision win over the dangerous Joaquin Buckley. The 38-year-old has since expressed his intention to reclaim the welterweight strap.

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'The Nigerian Nightmare' is viewed by many as one of the greatest welterweight champions of all time, and has high-profile wins over the likes of Gilbert Burns, Tyron Woodley, Jorge Masvidal, and Colby Covington, among others.


Kamaru Usman on how he deals with trash talk

It appears any flak he might receive for his street fight list will fail to make a dent in Kamaru Usman's formidable mindset. Having faced infamous trash talkers like Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal during his career, 'The Nigerian Nightmare' is no stranger to some good old verbal tirade.

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Answering a fan question on how he deals with the trash-talking, Usman credited confidence gained from training and an understanding of how verbal scuffles could translate to monetary rewards as his mantra:

"For me, it's when I know I've done the work in the gym and I've put in countless times of training and training, trash talk is something that just kind of adds to the game. And now obviously, I understand it more than most because I've been through it to where trash talk, especially in this sport, equals dollars in the bank of pay-per-view when you're the champion. So it's learning to understand that and just kind of let it roll, but not letting it deter you from all the work that you've put in." [21:59 minutes into the interview]

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Edited by Ujwal Jain
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