Kamaru Usman paid tribute to his home country, Nigeria, during his weigh-in ahead of facing Joaquin Buckley at UFC Atlanta tomorrow night in the USA.

Usman is set to return to the octagon ring for the first time in 20 months, having not competed since facing Khamzat Chimaev on a 10-day notice in October 2023, which he lost.

His opponent on his return is 31-year-old Joaquin Buckley, who is seven years younger than him, amid concerns over his health among the fans.

Usman turned up at the weigh-in with former UFC fighter and African brother Francis Ngannou, raising speculations over the Cameroonian’s possible return.

Usman painted his face with the Nigerian flag for the weigh-in. According to Home of Fight, he has previously done this against Colby Covington and Tyron Woodley, both of whom he beat.

The post attracted comments from Nigerian fans, many of whom urged him to win for the country.

@flexxincc replied:

“The flag on his face reminds me of something.”

@ravirshetye replied:

“Ohhhh this is going to be good, let's go champ.”

@banye100kasimawuna replied:

“Flag is out, let's go win King K.”

@therealmrken replied:

“Do it for our flag oo, we no dey carry last.”

Usman has not competed in nearly two years, and at 38, fans are worried about his health, particularly his history of knee problems, but the Nigerian nightmare has allayed fears.

“I’m good. Really, really, I’m good,” he said about his health as quoted by MMA Fighting. “It’s funny because that’s a running knock — knees, knees, knees! They don’t realize [my] knees were [actually] worse in my first fight in the UFC.

Usman has a 20-4-0 record in the UFC, and he admitted that his knee problem had persisted before his first fight, and he fought before he was scheduled to return after surgery.

“I was coming in right off the back of a microfracture surgery. Doctors say that’s about an eight-month recovery, and I fought four months after the surgery,” he said.

“So it is what it is. They can say whatever they want. Saturday, we’re going to get in there, he’s going to punch me, I’m going to punch him, and we’re going to see who wins.”

Legit.ng previously reported that Kamaru Usman gave back to a Nigerian community by feeding over 1,000 children during one of his visits to the country in 2021.

The former UFC champion donated to the Lagos Food Bank to feed a thousand children in the slums of the city and was available to assist with the distribution.

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Source: Legit.ng