Kamaru Usman accuses Max Holloway of fight-altering eye pokes at UFC 300
Throughout a current episode of the Pound 4 Pound podcast, Usman defined how two unintentional eye pokes by Holloway may’ve impacted the struggle.
“We are able to’t draw back from the truth that this man took the kick to the nostril,” Usman stated. “Was it the top of the primary spherical, simply seconds left or if not zero time left, took that kick to the nostril, which performs an enormous, enormous half in doubtlessly shifting on within the struggle as a result of now you’ll be able to’t breathe the best way you wish to breathe in that struggle.
“And on prime of that, we’ve to see the 2 eye pokes. I imply, they have been clear-cut legit eye pokes, and it wasn’t that Max was doing it maliciously or on function. They occurred. These are the kind of issues that may alter the end result of a struggle.”
The attention pokes by Holloway occurred simply hours after the UFC introduced new gloves for fighters. The roster will have the ability to use the gloves because the 12 months performs out.
Gaethje appeared gracious in defeat within the aftermath of UFC 300 and didn’t make any excuses for his efficiency. The loss snapped a two-fight profitable streak, together with a head-kick knockout of Dustin Poirier final July.
Holloway doesn’t have a big historical past of eye pokes throughout his UFC tenure, however they’ve turn out to be a hot-button matter lately. Chris Weidman’s eye pokes in opposition to Bruno Silva led to his knockout win being reversed to a technical determination, and Silva is interesting the bout.
Usman’s stance might be motivated by his robust bond as teammates with Gaethje, though it’s clear that he feels that Holloway nonetheless deserves credit score for his efficiency.