The welterweight division’s champion has entered all-time territory after successfully defending his title for the fifth time.

Kamaru Usman (20-1 MMA, 15-0 UFC) found himself in another exciting back-and-forth affair against Colby Covington (16-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC), but after 25 minutes, the champion would earn winning scores from all three judges to retain his title.

The welterweight title bout was the UFC 268 main event at Madison Square Garden in New York. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and early prelims on ESPN+.

With no love lost in this intense rivalry, naturally, there was no glove touch before the action began.

After a few initial strikes from both, the first significant moment of the bout was a takedown attempt from Covington that was reversed by Usman. On the mat, Usman landed a few punches and controlled the challenger for a moment before they returned to the feet, where the champion would control the center of the cage.

Covington darted in for a combination but Usman ducked under and completed another takedown, bringing the action to the canvas again for a brief period. Once back on the feet, striking exchanges continued until the round ended.

Usman maintained the center of the cage early in the second as they traded strikes. Covington would over-commit with another combination leading to a brief clinch before they continued to trade strikes.

In the final minute of the second, Usman would land a crushing left hook to drop Covington. The challenger popped right back up, but another left hand found the mark to send Covington back to the canvas again. Usman would close the round on top landing heavy punches to the body.

Covington recovered well to start the third and landed a nice combination of his own, although he was more cautious with his movement. Usman remained calm and allowed the fight to come to him, but the action would increase in the closing minute with a few heated exchanges. The round would come to a close after Covington changed levels and completed a takedown on the champ.

The challenger continued to prove a tough opponent as he landed a few clean strikes early in the fourth round. Covington kept the pressure high throughout the round and landed a hard uppercut that appeared to wobble Usman before the end of the frame.

Covington received chants from the crowd as the last round began. Hard striking exchanges continued, with both fighters landing cleanly, making for an exciting round. An accidental eye poke from Usman occurred in the closing moments, causing a brief pause in the action before the fight would conclude.

Notably, both men shared a moment of respect, embracing and sharing words of encouragement before returning to their corners. After another incredible fight between these two fantastic competitors, the judges scored the contest in favor of Usman with scores of 48-47, 48-47, and 49-46.

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Usman continues his path of destruction through the welterweight division by securing his 19th consecutive professional victory. Wins over Covington represent the first and fifth title defenses for “The Nigerian Nightmare” who seems like an unstoppable force at this point in his career. Since their first meeting, Usman has been an active champion, having defeated Jorge Masvidal twice and former teammate Gilbert Burns. Saturday’s victory over Covington marked his third title defense in 2021.

Covington now has two losses to Usman on his resume, which will likely make for a difficult path to earn a third shot if the belt does not change hands. Before facing Usman for the first time at UFC 245, Covington won seven straight fights behind his high-pressure fighting style. The polarizing former interim champion picked up a win over former champ Tyron Woodley in 2020 to earn his second shot but failed to get the job done yet again.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 268 results include:

• Kamaru Usman def. Colby Covington via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)

• Rose Namajunas def. Zhang Weili via split decision (48-47, 47-48, 49-46)

• Marlon Vera def. Frankie Edgar via knockout (head kick) – Round 3, 3:50

• Shane Burgos def. Billy Quarantillo via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

• Justin Gaethje def. Michael Chandler via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

• Alex Pereira def. Andreas Michailidis via TKO (knee, punches) – Round 2, 0:18

• Bobby Green def. Al Iaquinta via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:25

• Chris Curtis def. Phil Hawes via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 4:27

• Nassourdine Imavov def. Edmen Shahbazyan via TKO (elbows) – Round 2, 4:42

• Ian Garry def. Jordan Williams via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 4:59

• Chris Barnett def. Gian Villante via TKO (head kick, punches) – Round 2, 2:23

• Dustin Jacoby def. John Allan via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

• Melsik Baghdasaryan def. Bruno Souza via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

• Ode Osbourne def. CJ Vergara via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)