By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerians were downtrodden on Sunday as favourites Anthony Joshua and Kamaru Usman lost their respective bouts in the boxing and kickboxing categories respectively.
Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk was Joshua’s nemesis as he won their rematch again by a split decision to retain his world heavyweight titles in just his fourth fight in the division in Saudi Arabia.
Usyk, 35, who dismantled the defending champion in London last year, faced an improved Joshua but outboxed him once again to set up a potential unification bout with Britain’s Tyson Fury.
An angered Joshua peppered his post-match speech with expletives despite the presence of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, de facto ruler of the deeply religious country.
For Kamaru, he has lost his UFC Welterweight title after suffering a stunning loss to Leon Edwards at the Vivint Arena in Utah, the United States.
The Nigerian Nightmare was knocked out in the final minute of the fifth and last round in the main event of UFC 278 by Edwards whom he had beaten in their first fight in 2015.
Until the finish which came at 4:04 of the fifth round, Usman was ahead on points and was well on his way to retaining his undisputed title.
The 35-year-old went into the fight looking to tie Anderson Silva’s record-winning streak of 16 straight wins in the UFC.
He had been dominating the fight after the first round but when he leaned down to his right to defend an Edwards left, he was caught flush with a left head kick, sending the more than 17,000 in attendance at the Vivint arena into a frenzy.
Following the tough loss, the first of his UFC career, Usman took to social media to say he will bounce back with vengeance.