Welterweight Sean Brady dismissed claims that Joaquin Buckley's training with former champion Kamaru Usman will help him at UFC 328. Brady asserts he is a completely different stylistic matchup from Usman. This trash talk intensifies hype for their welterweight clash, pivotal for divisional rankings. It highlights Brady's confidence in his grappling edge. Expect Buckley to counter amid build-up to the event.
Sean Brady has pushed back on the notion that Joaquin Buckley's work in the gym with former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman will translate into any meaningful edge when the two meet at UFC 328 on May 9. Brady made clear he views the training partnership as irrelevant, arguing that he presents an entirely different stylistic problem from anything Usman brings to a camp.
Brady carries a 19-2 record into the fight and sits ranked seventh in the welterweight division. The 33-year-old Philadelphia native trains out of Renzo Gracie Philly and has built his reputation as one of the division's most dangerous grapplers, averaging 3.53 takedowns per 15 minutes alongside a striking accuracy of 55 percent. His confidence in a grappling-led game plan appears to be the foundation of his dismissal of the Usman training angle.
Buckley, known as "New Mansa," enters ranked eleventh at welterweight with a record of 21-8. The 32-year-old southpaw out of Murcielago MMA possesses a 76-inch reach — a three-inch advantage over Brady — and lands 3.88 significant strikes per minute, making him a live threat on the feet. His striking accuracy sits at 36 percent, and he averages just 0.1 submission attempts per 15 minutes, underscoring how heavily his game leans toward the stand-up.
Usman, ranked eighth at welterweight with a 21-4 record, brings a switch stance and 2.82 takedowns per 15 minutes of his own, so the wrestling dimension of his influence on Buckley's preparation is not nothing — Brady's point, though, is that his own grappling profile differs sharply enough to make that preparation a poor reference point.
Why it matters
- A Brady win would push a top-seven fighter deeper into title contention and drop Buckley further down the rankings ladder.
- Brady's elite takedown volume against Buckley's limited submission defense sets up a stark stylistic contrast.
- The reach and southpaw angles give Buckley a genuine path to keeping the fight standing, where Brady's ground threats are neutralized.
Saturday, May 9, 2026
