Earlier this week, Ben Askren told the mixed martial arts (MMA) media that he was threatened by fellow welterweight contender, Kamaru Usman, when the two came face-to-face backstage before the UFC 235 press conference in Las Vegas.
See those comments here.
While the language used by “The Nigerian Nightmare” was hardly cause for alarm, I could understand why “Funky” felt threatened during their exchange, particularly with the way he was rushed by the UFC 235 co-headliner.
Promotion president, Dana White, was quick to intervene, as were the other bystanders, though I find it hard to believe two elite wrestlers were going to start swinging in a narrow hallway just minutes before taking the “Sin City” stage.
Marty you are so tough, so cool and so scary! Shaking in my flip flops https://t.co/dKBSl1k7GI
— Ben Askren (@Benaskren) February 4, 2019
Instead, I believe Usman was trying to prove a point, similar to the one he made against that other 170-pound loudmouth, Colby Covington, during their little run-in back in April 2018 (watch that video here).
Usman will challenge Tyron Woodley for the 170-pound title, while Askren makes his Octagon debut against former welterweight champion, Robbie Lawler. The pay-per-view (PPV) action is scheduled for Sat., March 2, 2019 inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
For the current UFC 235 fight card and line up click here.