Joaquin Buckley isn’t usually one to get wide-eyed. However, when he met Kamaru Usman ahead of UFC Atlanta, everything changed. There was no trash talk or verbal dance. Just silence. ‘New Mansa’ believed that quiet spoke more than any insult. Usman, the former champion, famed for his back-and-forths with Masvidal, Leon, and Colby, had nothing to say. And before their eyes even met, the 31-year-old caught him taking a deep breath.

‘New Mansa’ noticed it all—body language, silence, and energy. “I always love to see the type of energy that fighters give other people and to see if they’ll give that same energy to me,” Buckley said at the presser. “With Kamaru Usman… he was quiet with me.”

To Buckley, that move signified one thing: ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ knew exactly what kind of fight he was about to enter. And he wasn’t keeping it cool. He was locked inside. “Little details like that mean a lot to me,” Buckley further added. “Because he knows the person standing in front of him is about to give him that action.”

For him, this is more than just another step up the ranks. It’s a war based on mutual awareness—two fighters who understand what’s coming and respect the dangers ahead of them. That level of tension does not need to be hyped any further. It already is.

Joaquin Buckley comes in hot, with a six-fight winning streak and names like Colby Covington and Stephen Thompson on his resume. He has already done the heavy lifting. Meanwhile, Kamaru Usman is battling back from a losing skid and a two-year absence.

But don’t be mistaken, as this is no tune-up for either man. It’s a decisive fight—with one chasing legacy, the other chasing arrival. The belt may not be in the picture yet, but a lot else surely is. And despite being on possibly his worst UFC run, Kamaru Usman believes he still is the best and a major threat to ‘New Mansa.’

Kamaru Usman opens up on bad form ahead of Joaquin Buckley fight

Kamaru Usman has lost three times in a row. That is the harsh truth. But as he comes into UFC Atlanta, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ doesn’t carry the weight of failure; instead, he carries something else: belief. Usman does not consider himself a fallen king. He still regards himself as the best. And this makes him a real threat.

“I feel good. I’m calm, drinking tea. Very serene. I feel like I’m better than all those guys that are ahead of me,” Usman told TMZ Sports. That isn’t bravado; it’s clarity. ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ is not claiming that his record is fine. He knows it’s not. But this is not about comfort. It’s about course correction, and he sees Joaquin Buckley as the first step back to the top.

That doesn’t mean he dismisses what’s in front of him. “Joaquin is very aggressive. Younger, hungrier… pretty well-balanced,” Usman admitted. The challenge is real, as is the risk. But for ‘The Nigerian Nightmare,’ this is more than just a fight; it’s an opportunity to prove that form is fleeting, but class? That is permanent.