Despite turning in another dominant submission victory at UFC 279 last weekend, Khamzat Chimaev has been lambasted for his glaring weight miss for a scheduled welterweight headliner against Nate Diaz – with middleweight kingpin, Israel Adesanya the latest to weigh in on the Chechen’s blunder.
Chimaev, who was initially slated to take main event status at UFC 279 last Saturday, was dropped from a matchup with the aforenoted, Diaz, landing himself a 180lbs catchweight clash with Kevin Holland in the night’s co-headliner instead.
Tipping the welterweight scales at 178.5lbs for his matchup with Diaz, Chimaev was pulled from the main event clash, receiving criticizm aplenty for his glaring botched weight cut.
Turning in another dominant Octagon victory, Chimaev, who once more avoided any significant strikes, elected against a glove touch with Holland, immediately dragging the Riverside native to the canvas, before wrapping up a D’Arce choke win just after two minutes of the first frame.
Israel Adesanya blasts Khamzat Chimaev for UFC 279 weight miss
Landing UFC victory number six, Chimaev, who has been tied to a potential middleweight division return before the close of this year by his head coach, Andreas Michael – was condemned for his weight miss by the above-mentioned, Adesanya.
“Sh*t was crazy,” Israel Adesanya said of the fight on his YouTube channel. “Khamzat (Chimaev) – shout out to Kevin (Holland), good sh*t. He held a good account of himself, scrambling, sticking to the position.”
“But Khamzat (Chimaev) was just a step ahead – two steps ahead event,” Israel Adesanya continued. “But he (Khamzat Chimaev) missed weight, so he a b*tch for that.” (Transcribed by MMA News)
Linked with a potential future title fight against City Kickboxing staple, Adesanya in the future, Chimaev will likely need another high-profile victory off the back of his victory over Holland, after his high-profile weight miss.
As for Adesanya, the defending champion is scheduled to headline UFC 281 on November 12. in a middleweight title fight against Brazilian striker, Alex Pereira.