ABU DHABI – UFC 294 open workouts took place Wednesday inside of Yas Mall, and MMA Junkie was on scene for the festivities.
Participating in the open workouts were lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag], featherweight champion [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag], [autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag], and former welterweight champ [autotag]Kamaru Usman[/autotag].
During Usman’s open workout, Justin Gaethje, who was his partner, can be heard asking Usman “you all right?” as they landed on the mat following a slam. It’s unclear what Usman’s response was or if he was seriously injured. They ended the grappling portion of the workout right after the slam, and Usman continued with some striking.
Gaethje later downplayed what the video appeared to show on X.
He said I’m good or something like that. I thought he hit his head on the mat. I asked him if he hit his head in this clip when we got up and he said no 👊
— Justin Gaethje 🇺🇸 (@Justin_Gaethje) October 18, 2023
He said I’m good or something like that. I thought he hit his head on the mat. I asked him if he hit his head in this clip when we got up and he said no
Makhachev defends his title against Volkanovski in a rematch that headlines UFC 294, and Chimaev welcomes Usman to the middleweight division in the co-headliner.
UFC 294 takes place Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on pay-per-view at a special time of 2 p.m. ET following prelims on ESPN+.
You can watch all four of the aforementioned fighters’ open workouts below.