It’s been a good month for the Usman brothers.
After his older brother Kamaru Usman captured the UFC welterweight title earlier this month, Mohammed Usman (4-1) registered a big win for his career, as well, when he emerged victorious at Titan FC 53.
Usman earned a lopsided unanimous decision victory over Frank Tate (5-7) in a heavyweight bout at Friday’s event, which took place at Xtreme Action Park in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and streamed on UFC Fight Pass.
After starting his career with three consecutive wins, Usman experienced his first career loss in his most recent bout 11 months ago. “The Motor” took plenty of time off between bouts, and he was able to return to form against Tate.
Usman got tagged with a big shot in the first round, and that turned him to grappling mode. He was able to ground Tate and take the wind out of his sails going into the second frame.
Tate showed heard in the second frame when he came out looking to land a haymaker for the knockout, but Usman fought intelligently and waited for his opportunity to go back to the takedown and work his top game for another one-sided stanza.
With the fight in the bag going into the third, Usman kept true to his strategy. He waited for Tate to overcommit on a combination, and when he did, Usman took top control and worked away for the remainder of the fight for the decision victory by scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26.
“I felt good to get back in there,” Usman said in his post-fight interview with Rashad Evans. “I just wanted to dominate and listen to my coaches and execute. That was No. 1. I reacted off what he gave me and I dominated. That’s the name of the game. If I’m going to come out and here and go 15, I better dominate.”
For more on Titan FC 53, check out the MMA Events section of the site.
