The Fight Night in Oklahoma City has put two of the central figures, who competed in the main and the co-main event of the card, under the microscope. A middleweight doubleheader featured Dricus du Plessis vs. Kamaru Usman in the main event, following the co-headliner bout between Christian Leroy Duncan and Jared Cannonier.

With both veterans, Usman and Cannonier, losing their respective bouts, talks of retirement have emerged. It didn’t take long for those discussions to reach UFC CEO Dana White. Normally, someone who has little patience for setbacks and believes in cutting ties with fighters whose prospects have dimmed, White surprised everyone by taking a firm stance at the post-fight press conference when asked about Kamaru Usman and Jared Cannonier’s futures.

“I don’t know. Obviously, a great fight, you know, fighting a much bigger guy, and he’s got a great chin,” White said, praising Usman. “He’s still got it. It’s not like, ‘Oh, Usman’s done, and he should retire.’ He had a great fight tonight. So, yeah, I don’t know. He’s got to go home, rest, heal up, and figure out what’s next.”

This confirms that, at least for the time being, the former welterweight king will remain in the UFC. However, the remark from White prompted another reporter to shift the discussion toward Jared Cannonier, who is now on a two-fight losing streak. Despite this, the 56-year-old remained steadfast in his view.

“Listen, when they come in here, you guys got to ask them what they’re thinking about next,” White added. “You know, both guys performed and look good. Not like, you know, we’ve seen the ‘Holy sh-t those guys should retire’ fights. Those weren’t it.”

White’s confidence in both Usman and Cannonier’s abilities to continue likely stems from the way both veterans performed.

The Nigerian Nightmare was coming off a dominant victory over Joaquin Buckley. But that bout took place over a year ago after Usman returned to action two years following his middleweight debut, in which he stretched the formidable Khamzat Chimaev over three rounds, before losing by a majority decision.

Considering that history, stepping into a matchup against Du Plessis, who has been a regular fixture at 185 pounds since 2019, deserves far more context than simply concluding that Usman needs to retire.

Despite being 39 years old, the former welterweight champion had his moments, even securing a takedown with a minute left in the third round against a much larger DDP. While one exchange saw the South African land a hook on Usman that seemingly rocked him, sparking an online debate over whether the referee should have stopped the fight, Kamaru Usman held his own, even absorbing a head kick that pushed him against the cage.

Considering that he still possesses considerable drawing power and continues to headline marquee events, there is a compelling case for why the 21-5 fighter should continue.

Usman’s own perspective on retirement carries equal weight. “If I feel that I’m still putting that work in and I have the ability to still go and be a champion, I’m still here for it, but if I feel like I don’t, then I won’t stick around anymore.”

A similar case can be made for Cannonier as well.

Is it finally time for Kamaru Usman and Jared Cannonier to walk away?

The Texan turned 42 a few months ago. Outside of the TKO win over Gregory Rodrigues in February last year, the former middleweight title challenger has not secured a victory since 2024, including the latest loss against Leroy Duncan. That record makes a title shot in a deeply stacked middleweight division highly unlikely.

The 18-10 fighter has also been competing professionally for the last fifteen years, and that too at a high level, where he has absorbed significant punishment. The latest bout saw him receive crushing elbows from Leroy Duncan.

But, as in Usman’s case, that argument can be flipped by highlighting how Cannonier has continued to put on exciting fights. He is often matched against much younger and more aggressive opponents and is still able to take them the distance. Including the latest one, Cannonier’s previous loss to Michael Page was also a decision defeat.

It’s also worth remembering that Jared Cannonier has overcome several serious career-threatening injuries during his career and yet still chose to continue fighting.

Taken together, if both Usman and Cannonier continue to display superb conditioning and technical craft despite their advancing age, instead of suffering back-to-back knockout losses and remain competitive against ranked contenders, then there’s little reason why they should retire simply because they lost their latest bouts.

Notably, the path to title contention is undeniably steep for both Usman and Cannonier. However, their prospects have not diminished to the extent that the UFC should consider moving on from them, as it often does with fighters who are either on a losing streak or whose championship aspirations have faded.

What is more significant here is that Usman’s and Cannonier’s next fights will likely determine which direction their UFC careers take. Until then, as White suggested, they could be afforded the benefit of the doubt and given an opportunity to put together one more meaningful run before hanging up their gloves.