Kamaru Usman (21-5) isn’t going to retire despite losing to Dricus du Plessis (24-3) in a middleweight bout last month, according to manager Ali Abdelaziz. The unanimous decision loss to Du Plessis was the former UFC welterweight champion’s fourth loss in five fights, but despite that his manager says the 39-year-old  Usman is not ready to hang up the gloves just yet

“Kamaru Usman is not going to retire. He’s fighting the best guys in the world. He fought Buckley and beat him. Before that he fought Khamzat on 10 days’ notice. He’s not losing — nobody is whipping Kamaru’s ass. I was always against going to middleweight, because I think he’s too small for middleweight,” Abdelaziz

Abdelaziz pushed back on the idea that Usman is finished as a fighter, pointing to his recent form as evidence he still belongs among the division’s best:

“Kamaru Usman is a future Hall of Famer, the greatest welterweight of all time. He never turned down a fight. Whatever he wants, he can do at this point of his career,” Abdelaziz