Joaquin Buckley Reacts to Loss in UFC Atlanta Main Event

Joaquin Buckley’s six-fight winning streak may have come to an end at UFC Atlanta, but he is confident that the best is yet to come.

“New Mansa” struggled with his defensive wrestling for much of the evening, dropping a five-round verdict to former welterweight king Kamaru Usman on Saturday night at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta. While Buckley staged a late rally, it was too late to sway the scorecards in his favor.

“Hand wasn’t raised last night, but I am still victorious and will be one of the greats,” Buckley wrote on Instagram.

“This trip has been beyond amazing, and I wouldn’t change a thing that happened in my fight camp. Everything was perfectly planned — I just didn’t execute like I know I could… We wanted to land early damage on Usman and get him moving back, but he did a good job neutralizing threats with takedowns.

“But don’t get it twisted: Usman was more concerned about holding me than hurting me in this fight, but he did what he felt was necessary to win and so can’t be mad at him. Congrats to [Usman] and his team and [Francis Ngannou], I saw [your] message. Excited about the welterweight division. See ya when I see ya.”

Ngannou, the former UFC heavyweight champion and current PFL star, was in attendance at UFC Atlanta to support Usman. He also offered some words of praise for Buckley’s late surge in the fifth frame.

“Congrats to my brother [Kamaru Usman] for his amazing victory last night. It's inspiring to see him do that after all he's been through lately,” Ngannou wrote on X. “Congrats to [Joaquin Buckley] on his impressive performance. That Round 5!”

Congrats to my brother @USMAN84kg for his amazing victory last night. It's inspiring to see him do that after all he's been through lately.

Congrats to @Newmansa94 on his impressive performance. That round 5! 🔥😱 pic.twitter.com/9BPh1uBg0h

— Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) June 15, 2025

The 31-year-old Buckley emerged as a fresh contender at 170 pounds during a winning streak that included notable victories over the likes of Colby Covington, Stephen Thompson, Nursulton Ruziboev and Vicente Luque. The St. Louis, Missouri, native initially rose to prominence in the UFC for his viral spinning back kick knockout of Impa Kasanganay in October 2020.

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