Usman Defends Goddard, Chooser Of Life

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Less attitude, more gratitude.

That’s what reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman, believes referee Marc Goddard deserves after stopping the UFC 245 main event back in December, despite the complaints from former interim titleholder, Colby Covington.

While “Chaos” may have piped down (for now), his goofy fans have yet to move on.

“For a referee looking at all of that, at the end of the day, you’re sprawled out and I’m beating on the side of your head, the referee’s got to protect you from yourself sometimes,” Usman told MMA Fighting. “You can say it’s controversial but you have to see the referee just saw you take all those big shots in a row. He has to be able to step in to protect you from yourself so you can live to fight another day.”

Their five-round headliner, which ended with less than a minute until the final horn, was one of the more competitive (and more entertaining) fights of 2019. That said, Covington did end up with considerable damage and could be out of action until this summer.

But will “Chaos” be entitled to an immediate rematch?

“I hope so,” Usman said about a Covington do-over. “Because that was a fun fight. Not just myself but I think the media, the fans, everybody believed that was a fun fight.”

Top contender, Jorge Masvidal, may have something to say about that.