Former Wildcat Mohammed Usman becomes ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ joins brother Kamaru in UFC

The former Arizona Wildcats defensive lineman won his heavyweight bout against Zac Pauga in “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 30 finale at UFC Vegas 59, earning UFC fighter status.

Usman, who was on Julianna Peña’s team, won via a second-round knockout. Pauga, a former professional rugby player, reached with a left jab, which was countered with a left-handed haymaker by Usman. Pauga immediately fell to the mat, and Usman was crowned “The Ultimate Fighter.” Usman’s contract with the UFC will be worth six figures.  

“I manifested this moment,” Usman told UFC’s website after the win. “I manifested it through my coaches … I believed in myself, and I got the job done.”

Usman, who has the NFL shield tattooed on his right biceps, credited some of his football training for the knockout.

“I played at a very high level as well. I know one thing coach says (is) don’t stop until that whistle blows,” he said. “As soon as I (saw Pauga) go, I finished the job. And when I go in there … I gave him those two extra (punches) to let him know that’s the exclamation point to me starting my career in the UFC.”

Usman’s brother, Kamaru, won The Ultimate Fighter in 2015 and has become one of the top MMA fighters in the world. Kamaru Usman was in Mohammed’s corner on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Born in Auchi, Nigeria, the Usmans moved to Texas as kids. Mohammed Usman became a standout football player in high school, earning a scholarship to the University of Houston. He left after one season and, following a stint at Navarro College, signed to play for then-Arizona coach Mike Stoops.

The 238-pound Usman played at the UA during the 2010 and ’11 seasons, sitting out nine games as a junior because of an NCAA investigation dating to his time in Houston. He finished the 2010 season with three tackles and a blocked kick in three games. Usman was better as a senior, playing 11 games and registering 19 tackles along with a tackle-for-loss, sack and forced fumble.

In 2011, Mohammed Usman told Tucson reporters about his younger brother, a Division II national champion wrestler at Nebraska-Kearney. At the time, the younger Usman was called “Marty” — a mangling of his first name, Kamarudeen.

Mohammed Usman revealed before his first fight in May that he was dedicating his journey through “The Ultimate Fighter” to his son, Nash, who drowned in 2019. 

“That’s my motivation. … He’s the main reason why I fight,” Usman said earlier in the season. “When I first had him, I would just look at him in his eyes and was like, ‘Your dad is not a normal person. I’m going to show that your dad is gifted and he’s blessed.'”

Usman becomes the latest UFC fighter with connections to Tucson, joining Anthony Birchak and Dominick Cruz. Justin Gaethje hails from Safford.

Usman called Saturday’s win “just the start of what I’m trying to do in this sport.”

“This is just be the beginning,” he said. “I’m just excited.”