Khamzat Chimaev says Nate Diaz got lucky their welterweight matchup was canceled at the last minute.
Khamzat Chimaev says Nate Diaz should be counting his lucky stars that their welterweight matchup headlining UFC 279 was canceled due to the former missing weight.
Khamzat went on to fight Kevin Holland at a catchweight of 180 pounds, while Diaz locked horns with Tony Ferguson in the UFC 279 main event. The former steamrolled Holland in the first round, while the latter caught Ferguson with a submission in round four.
Chimaev wasn’t impressed with Diaz nor Ferguson last night and said he would have killed Diaz had their fight gone ahead as scheduled.
“Kevin Holland, tough guy, stronger guy, much better than Diaz,” Chimaev said at the UFC 279 post-fight press conference (h/t Sherdog). “If Diaz and him were fighting, Holland would kill him. I finished that guy, so easy, first round.
“So yeah, Diaz has to thank God he didn’t fight me.”
“Did you see how they kicked, how they punched, how they wrestled, how they grappled? These guys are old,” he added. “I’m young, I’m the killer.”
As for what’s next, Chimaev still believes he should get the next title shot at welterweight despite missing weight by over 7 pounds on Friday.
“Who are they going to give it to? Who is next there? Everyone loses the fight,” Khamzat said. “Colby [Covington] loses two or three fights in a row. [Jorge] Masvidal loses, when was his last win? Against Diaz. Did you see Diaz fight? So terrible.”
Chimaev is undefeated in the UFC at 6-0 and is currently #3 in the UFC welterweight rankings. He is considered one of the most talented fighters in the promotion and believes he is destined to become a two-division champion.