Kamaru Usman feels like "the hot chick at the bar" after Joaquin Buckley's callout: "No one's getting what I'm saying"

Kamaru Usman hasn't fought in over a year but had to respond to various callouts from rising contenders in his division. Now, he has responded to the latest challenge he's been issued by Joaquin Buckley, who recently TKO'd former interim welterweight champion Colby Covington at UFC Tampa.

On a recent upload to his Pound 4 Pound with Kamaru & Henry podcast, 'The Nigerian Nightmare' gave Buckley and all others intent on fighting him his response. While Usman remains determined to prove himself the world's best welterweight, he will do so on his own time when he is fully recovered.

He said:

"I feel like the hot chick at the bar. Everybody wants a piece. It's almost like no one's listening to what I'm saying. No one's getting what I'm saying. I don't care who it is. Shavkat [Rakhmonov], Belal [Muhammad], Ian [Machado Garry], [Joaquin] Buckley, 'JDM' [Jack Della Maddalena], I don't care who it is. One thing that I won't do—because I've done it for so long and too much, which is partially why I'm having to take this layoff—is compete when I'm not ready. When I am healthy, I don't care who it is."

Check out Kamaru Usman addressing recent call-outs below (4:30):

Once he returns, the welterweight great claims it doesn't matter who he faces and that he has no specific opponent in mind. What matters most to him is being in optimal condition, which is what Conor McGregor used as justification for withdrawing from his UFC 303 bout with Michael Chandler.

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Kamaru Usman is on a three-fight losing streak

At one point, Kamaru Usman reigned over the welterweight division with an iron fist. However, a stunning last-minute knockout loss to Leon Edwards at UFC 278 saw him drop the title to the Englishman, who he again lost to in a subsequent rematch at UFC 286, this time via majority decision.

'The Nigerian Nightmare' was unable to turn his luck around in his next bout at UFC 294, where he faced unbeaten Chechen sensation Khamzat Chimaev in a short-notice middleweight bout. Despite his best efforts, he was outwrestled en route to another majority decision loss.

It marks the first losing streak of Usman's career, and he is yet to make his octagon return since losing on Oct. 21, 2023.