Inaugural BMF champion Jorge Masvidal explains why Kamaru Usman beats Dricus du Plessis at UFC Oklahoma City

Kamaru Usman has received high praise from his former opponent, the UFC's inaugural BMF champion, Jorge Masvidal.

Moreover, "Gamebred" has picked Usman to beat Dricus du Plessis in their upcoming middleweight fight that'll headline UFC Oklahoma City on July 18. 

Jorge Masvidal fought Kamaru Usman twice in the UFC

Having fought Usman twice in UFC welterweight championship matches in the UFC -- getting outpointed in 2020 and knocked out in 2021 -- Masvidal is no stranger to him. 

Masvidal retired from professional MMA competition in 2023. On the other hand, Usman lost his UFC welterweight belt in 2022 and has since competed at both welterweight and middleweight. He's currently on a quest to capture the UFC middleweight title.

Many believe that the winner of the Du Plessis vs. Usman matchup could enter the middleweight title picture, as they both boast wins over reigning UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland. 

Jorge Masvidal's assessment of why Kamaru Usman is likely to defeat Dricus du Plessis at UFC Oklahoma City

In an edition of the Deep Waters podcast, former UFC fighters -- Jorge Masvidal, ex-UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans, and Din Thomas -- addressed various topics. 

Notably, Masvidal countered the hypothesis that Kamaru Usman, who's 39 years of age, is well past his athletic prime. 

"I don't think he (Kamaru Usman) is shot at all, man," Masvidal stated. He alluded to Usman's trilogy of MMA bouts against Leon Edwards under the UFC promotional banner. 

Usman beat Edwards via unanimous decision in a non-title welterweight matchup when they were both making their way up the division back in 2015.

Their rematch saw Edwards stop Usman via fifth-round headkick KO to capture the UFC welterweight championship in 2022. Their third encounter witnessed "Rocky" successfully defend the 170-pound belt by beating Usman via majority decision in 2023. 

On that note, Masvidal explained that Usman was well ahead on points in their rematch before Edwards landed the iconic last-round headkick and beat him. "Gamebred" thereby indicated that Usman's aforementioned performance didn't show any signs of his decline. 

Additionally, Masvidal pointed out that Usman did well in a middleweight matchup against Khamzat Chimaev in late 2023, a fight the Nigerian-American fighter accepted on less than two weeks' notice and still gave Chimaev a tough battle.

Apparently, Masvidal believes Usman deserved to win it, although the judges handed "Borz" a majority decision win. 

Masvidal then cited Usman's unanimous decision victory against Joaquin Buckley from last year and said, "And then, he has the (Joaquin) Buckley fight, in which he looked phenomenal. So, I don't think he's anywhere near shot. I think he can still contend for a belt." 

The American fighter of Cuban descent highlighted that Du Plessis is a dangerous fighter who boasts heavy hands and is incredibly athletic. He warned, however, that "Stillknocks" would have to fight an almost-perfect fight to defeat Usman. 

Masvidal added, "Usman, I think, beats him three-four times out of five, easy, you know. He's just too complete everywhere. And where he's lacking, Du Plessis is lacking, Usman is phenomenal, which is the wrestling and the control department." 

The 41-year-old implied that Usman is good enough in the boxing department, so as to avoid any trouble against Du Plessis on the feet. He foresees Usman scoring takedowns and controlling "DDP" unless the latter has made some drastic improvements in such a short time since his previous octagon appearance against Chimaev last August. 

Furthermore, Masvidal seemed to reaffirm that Usman is likely to win but noted, "He's a great athlete. I don't put it past him that he could improve a lot. But could he improve enough to deal with Usman's wrestling? I don't think so." 

 

Watch Jorge Masvidal give his assessment of Dricus du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman below: 

.@GamebredFighter is picking Usman to beat DDP at #UFCOKC

"Du Plessis almost has to fight a perfect fight to beat Usman. Usman I think beats him 3 or 4 times out of 5, easy. He's too complete everywhere." pic.twitter.com/5MfIyfGlrz

— UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount) June 22, 2026