Dec 14, 2024; Tampa, Florida, UNITED STATES; Joaquin Buckley (blue gloves) reacts after the fight against Colby Covington (red gloves) at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

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Joaquin Buckley Calls Out Former UFC Welterweight Champ For Next Fight After Huge Win Over Colby Covington

Buckley gave power to the fans with the decision to choose his next opponent!

Joaquin Buckley just exploded onto the UFC Tampa stage with a phenomenal win against Colby Covington. The action in this fight had fans jumping out of their seats. The St. Louis native didn’t just win; he made a statement that echoed throughout the welterweight division.

Buckley gave power to the fans with the decision to choose his next opponent. He gave them three high-level names. These include Leon Edwards, Kamaru Usman, and current champion Belal Muhammad. The decision to single out any one of them was dependent on the loudness of the cheers from the fans.

And cheers, they did! Kamaru Usman’s name as Joaquin Buckley’s next opponent echoed loudly in the Amalie Arena, with 18,625 fans beckoning him on.

The UFC Tampa main event victor followed the fans’ wishes. He called out the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ to face him next. Now, it lies with the UFC and the matchmakers to make this fan-favorite fight happen.

Joaquin Buckley calls out ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’

Joaquin Buckley has set his eyes on the former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman after a dominant performance at the UFC Fight Night. His domination of Colby Covington has arguably set him up for this high-level matchup.

Kamaru Usman is no pushover though. He was the reigning UFC welterweight champion for close to 3 years. However, his recent performances hint that he might be towards the end of his glorious career.

LEON EDWARDS JUST KNOCKED OUT KAMARU USMAN WITH A HEAD KICK!!!!!

WE HAVE A NEW WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION!!!!!!

OHHHH MYYYYY GOOOOOODDDNNEEEEESSSS!!! #UFC278 pic.twitter.com/qiAcDaiNIr
— UFC_AUSNZ (@UFC_AUSNZ) August 21, 2022

The decline of his career started after his 5th-round head-kick KO loss against Leon Edwards. What followed were more losses. He went on to lose the rematch against ‘Rocky.’ Usman then fought a short-notice fight at middleweight against Khamzat Chimaev back in October of 2023. Despite having a good third round, Usman lost a majority decision to Borz.

As of now, Kamaru Usman has not fought in over a year and is 1-3 in his last 4 fights.

‘New Mansa’ beats Colby ‘Chaos’ Covington due to Doctor Stoppage

Joaquin Buckley put on a show at UFC Tampa this past weekend. Taking out a former title contender is no easy feat. And in doing so, he showed everyone that he belonged in the top tier of the UFC welterweight division.

Buckley opened a laceration below his opponent’s eyebrow in the initial round of the fight. As the fight went on, he continued to batter Colby Covington with heavy shots. This made the cut bigger and bigger till the doctor had seen enough and put an end to the fight.

Joaquin Buckley (@Newmansa94) now has more KO/TKO wins than any other @UFC fighter since 2020 with eight. 👊#UFCTampa Main Card Results ➡️ https://t.co/hh8cKk8ZMZ
— UFC News (@UFCNews) December 15, 2024

Since moving down to welterweight back in May 2023, Buckley has unleashed his real potential. He is currently on a six-fight win streak, with 4 of those coming this year. He also boasts the most KO wins since 2020 (8 KO’s).

(Image Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck – Imagn)

Colby Covington

Joaquin Buckley

Kamaru Usman

Zaid Quraishi

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I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!