UFC star Kamaru Usman has praised Leon Edwards’ Hail Mary knockout in the main event of UFC 278.

After grinding his way to a 3-1 lead on the scorecards heading into the fifth round, Kamaru Usman seemed to be well on his way to successfully defending the UFC welterweight championship for the sixth time. In doing so, he also would’ve matched Anderson Silva’s incredible 16-fight unbeaten streak in the UFC.

Unfortunately for the former king, it didn’t quite play out that way as Leon Edwards landed one of the nastiest head-kicks we’ve seen in a long time to knock Usman out and capture the strap.

Kamaru was quick to come out on social media and applaud Leon for his win, and in addition to that, he also took part in an interview with TMZ - showing the world how champions react when they get knocked down.

During their conversation, Usman made sure to give Edwards props for how it all played out.

“It was a great shot, I’m talking Hail Mary in the Super Bowl. That was a great shot, man.

“It’s not hard at all [to watch]. Do you know how many people I’ve done that to? It happened, and that’s the beautiful thing about this sport — that happens, but we forget what was actually taking place in that fight. I’m not down at all. It’s almost like everyone is more sad about it than I am. Everyone else is more emotional than I am. To me, that lets me know that people care, that people are invested.

“I’m so gracious with just the time, and it sucks that the attention is from a defeat. “I thought I was famous before, but f***, with the meme action going on, oh, I’m famous now!

“It just creates hunger for the return, and I’m just excited for what’s next. I have a rare opportunity now to just inspire and motivate people that you can fall and get back up. I’m excited about it.”

Running it back

While it’s far too early to talk about dates, the expectation is that Leon Edwards will defend his newly-won title against Kamaru Usman next year in England.

Khamzat Chimaev, Nate Diaz, Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington, meanwhile, will have to wait their turn.