{"id":4029,"date":"2019-03-06T09:38:49","date_gmt":"2019-03-06T09:38:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/betcentral.onpressidium.com\/?p=4029"},"modified":"2023-05-31T06:27:51","modified_gmt":"2023-05-31T04:27:51","slug":"nigerian-nightmare-ufc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/machibet777-affiliate.com\/news\/nigerian-nightmare-ufc\/","title":{"rendered":"THE NIGERIAN NIGHTMARE’S DREAM NIGHT FOR AFRICAN MMA"},"content":{"rendered":"

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06 March 2019, by: Quintin van Jaarsveld<\/h6>\n

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THE NIGERIAN NIGHTMARE’S DREAM NIGHT FOR AFRICAN MMA<\/span><\/h1>\n

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Kamaru Usman etched his name in mixed martial arts history on Saturday night, dominating Tyron Woodley in the co-main event of UFC 235 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to become the first-ever African fighter to capture UFC gold.
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An improbable dream came true for the man known as the \u201cNigerian Nightmare\u201d, who fought the fight of his life to become the welterweight champion of the world.<\/h4>\n

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Woodley had ruled over the division for nearly three years following a lightning quick knockout of Robbie Lawler. The American had defended the belt on four occasions, and was favoured to turn back Usman in the fight capital of the world.<\/h4>\n

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\u201cThe Chosen One\u201d was regarded by most, myself included, as a better version of the challenger heading into their pay-per-view showdown. His Hall of Fame-worthy body of work had shown him to be the more devastating striker, better wrestler (the first Big 12 champion and Division I standout) and superior all-round athlete.<\/h4>\n

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Not that Usman, a Division II champion at 84kg, had not looked impressive, quite the contrary. He entered the title tilt on a remarkable 13-fight win streak and fresh off steam-rolling former lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos in December.<\/h4>\n

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The big question was how the Ultimate Fighter season 21 winner would fare against a battle-hardened, well-rounded champion like Woodley, who in my opinion is second only to the recently-retired Georges St-Pierre as far as all-time welterweight greats are concerned.<\/h4>\n

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Under the brightest of lights, an ocean away from Auchi, in the midwestern Edo state of Nigeria where he was born, a relaxed Usman walked (and danced) to the Octagon for his date with destiny whilst proudly waving the Nigerian flag.<\/h4>\n

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With a country\u2026a nation\u2026on his shoulders, the 31-year-old produced arguably the most dominant performance by a challenger in UFC history, outworking, outstriking and outwrestling Woodley in a five-round clinic to clinch his, and Africa\u2019s, first world championship.<\/h4>\n

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Woodley wasn\u2019t his explosive self; he looked flat from bell to bell, and although he underperformed, he admitted in his post-fight presser that he felt hypnotised – perplexed by how smoothly Usman was able to mix his striking with his wrestling to mask the takedown and control the contest.<\/h4>\n

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Sports Diary
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\nDate – 3rd March, 2019.
\nOn this day in history, Nigeria born Kamaru Usman became the first African fighter to win an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) title. He won the mixed-martial arts (MMA) bout against American Tyron Woodley. pic.twitter.com\/JirEJmGTjg<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 The Diary Naija (@DiaryNaija) March 6, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n