It was a tough night at the office for former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, who took five rounds of serious damage at the fists and feet of Dricus Du Plessis. "The Nigerian Nightmare" was wobbled badly multiple times but somehow managed to stay upright and conscious through the 25-minute fight.

At the end of the bout, judges handed out 50-45, 49-46, and 49-46 scores in DDP's favor, which felt a bit overly generous to Usman. Du Plessis nearly finished the fight early on and multiple other times across the bout.

Retirement Talk Looms

DDP's domination of Usman was so thorough that it was hard not to wonder whether Usman, who took his gloves off after the fight, was about to announce his retirement. Instead, he questioned what fight the judges were watching and said he would be willing to fight at middleweight again, despite the size difference clearly being a factor.

UFC CEO Dana White was asked if he thought that should be it for Usman.

"I don't know," White said. "Obviously a great fight, fighting a much bigger guy, and he's got a great chin. He's still got it. It's not like, 'Oh, Usman's done and he should retire.' He had a great fight tonight. So I don't know. He's got to go home, rest, heal up, and figure out what's next."

What's Next for Usman?

Retirement talk has dogged Usman, largely because he has been so inactive over the past few years. He took nearly two years off after losing to Khamzat Chimaev. He looked great in a June 2025 win over Joaquin Buckley, then disappeared for another year. Now he has taken a ton of trauma in a middleweight fight that never made much sense to begin with.

If there is anything to glean from this fight, it is that Usman's prospects at middleweight are poor. He may return to 170 and knock back another young contender, but what does that get him at this point with so much red on his recent record? Usman may not be done, but his options are dwindling.