Khamzat Chimaev will fight for a second time in 10 days on July 25 after being matched against UFC newcomer Rhys McKee who has accepted the fight on 7 days’ notice.
Brett Okamoto first broke the news that Chimaev had his second ‘Fight Island’ fight lined up and his opponent would most likely be McKee, he wrote on social media.
“UFC serious about booking ‘The Wolf’ Khamzat Chimaev a second fight on Fight Island, after his impressive debut on Wednesday. Current front runner for opponent is Ireland’s Rhys McKee. This would be at welterweight. 185 debut on 7/15, 170 sophomore appearance on 7/25.”
The Sweedish fighter made an impressive UFC debut on July 15 when he faced John Phillips up at middleweight. Chimaev dominated the fight from the opening bell using his elite-level wrestling to take the fight to the floor where he unleashed nasty ground and pound in round one.
The opening five minutes were so dominant it earned him two 10-8 scores and one 10-7 from the judges. In the second round, he once again took the fight to the mat and it was there, he locked up D’Arce choke and found the finish.
Chimaev spoke post-fight about wanting to fight the big-name welterweight fighters as soon as possible. He even mentioned Nate Diaz and former champion Robbie Lawler but he took special time out to chastise Mike Perry who has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons as of late.
Popular Irish fighter McKee is currently riding a three-fight win streak. Last time out he stopped Hakon Foss inside one round. He holds a high-profile win over former Cage Warriors lightweight champion Jai Herbert who is also due to make his UFC debut on July 25.
The welterweight fighter will make his debut on the undercard of Darren Till vs. Robert Whittaker. McKee will need to pass several COVID-19 tests, undergo quarantine and fly to Abu Dhabi before he can fight next weekend.
Are you excited to see Khamzat Chimaev fight again next weekend?