Dana White on Kamaru Usman’s performance at UFC 286: “I thought he was going to be very gun shy”

Kamaru Usman fell short at UFC 286, but UFC President Dana White thinks “The Nigerian Nightmare” didn’t back down.

Usman and Edwards did battle in a trilogy fight, which emanated from The O2 Arena in London, England this past Saturday. The UFC Welterweight Championship bout went the distance and was competitive throughout. Ultimately, it was Edwards who had his hand raised. He did enough in the eyes of the judges at Octagon side, nabbing a majority decision win.

Speaking to media members during the UFC 286 post-fight press conference, Dana White admitted that he didn’t think Usman would be willing to strike with Edwards as much as he did in the trilogy fight (h/t MMAJunkie.com).

“I expected a lot more wrestling out of Usman than I saw. And when he did try to wrestle, obviously Leon did a great job, especially if you compare it to the first fight. … Do I think Usman was (gun shy)? Yeah. That’s what I thought was going to happen going in. I thought he was going to be very gun shy. I thought he was going to be holding onto those legs all night. He did the exact opposite. He only shot a few times and he was willing to mix it up in there.”

It’s easy to see why the UFC boss thought Usman would be hesitant to strike going into the trilogy bout. After all, Usman’s grappling worked to near perfection during his rematch with Edwards last year, but a flush head kick changed the story in an instant. Usman certainly wasn’t afraid to throw leather, even when he’d get caught with some solid strikes from the 170-pound king.

Usman may have dropped two in a row to “Rocky,” but he was quick to squash any rumors of retirement during his post-fight interview. He vowed to be back and meet Edwards inside the Octagon a fourth time.