Tag: Crypto

Khamzat Chimaev’s manager is speaking out about the recent crypto controversy surrounding his fighter.

Last week, Chimaev went on social media to promote SMASH, a Solana-based memecoin launched with the help of the undefeated mixed martial artist. According to a report from onchain investigator ZachXBT, up to 78% of the SMASH token supply was bought by insiders and developer-related wallets, leading to accusations that the Chechen superstar was pulling the ol’ crypto pump-and-dump on his supporters.

“Khamzat your team is incompetent as you directly linked the team wallets with the insider wallets buying up 78%+ of the supply,” ZachXBT revealed. “Why do all of you instantly nuke your reputation with meme coin scams?” (h/t Coin Telegraph).

Offering some insight into the situation, Chimaev’s manager, Majdi Shammas, claims that ‘Borz’ was not directly involved in the crypto scheme.

“I want to comment the recent reports on the SMASH meme coin,” Shammas wrote on X. I was approached by a group claiming to be fans of my client Khamzat Chimaev. They wanted to record a short video promoting their launch. So I agreed to that, nothing more nothing less. Maybe I was mislead. Khamzat wasn’t involved and know just as little as you do. So the news is really unpleasant and I’m seeking an explanation from those responsible.

“My apologies to Khamzat and all others of you affected by this, if I could have done anything differently. Thank you for your understanding, I’ll keep you updated.”

Khamzat Chimaev’s Manager Taking Responsibility for Ongoing SMASH saga

Speaking with Frontkick Online, Shammas placed some of the blame on himself and once again reiterated that Chimaev was in no way involved in the swindle which reportedly scammed early adopters out of over a million dollars.

“They just wanted Khamzat to do a quick promotional video, which I agreed to on his behalf. If it turns out that that was a mistake, I really apologize,” Shammas said. “I’m still trying to gather more information and wrap my head around this mess.”

Khamzat Chimaev has not yet commented on the situation, but all promotional material related to SMASH has been scrubbed from his social media accounts.

After going nine months and counting without a fight, Khamzat Chimaev had to find a way to keep the money rolling in. Unfortunately, it involved scamming all of his fans.

On Tuesday, the undefeated Chechen star took to social media to ask which cryptocurrency he should invest in. The next day, he announced the launch of his own themed meme coin appropriately named “SMASH.”

“There is one crypto coin about me. They call it SMASH,” Chimaev said in a video on X. “Let’s ‘smash’ together guys. Let’s go.”

Sadly, for anyone who actually bought the digital currently, SMASH quickly plummeted to zero. According to GeckoTerminal, the coin was down 96% within 24 hours of Chimaev’s message to “smash” on SMASH.

It had all the signs of a classic crypto pump-and-dump per a report from Decrypt.

Pump and dump schemes in the world of cryptocurrency typically involve celebrities investing in a token, heavily promoting that token to spur a price increase, and subsequently dumping their holdings at a significant profit. This often results in a heavy decline or even collapse of a token’s price, impacting unsuspecting holders (h/t Chain Analysis).

According to Decrypt, Blockchain detective ZachXBT was quickly able to connect the “insider wallets” that dumped most of the token’s supply directly to the fighter’s development team wallets, suggesting this was nothing more than an orchestrated scam.

“Using timing analysis confirms 71% insider and dev team wallets [are] directly linked as they were funded by [the] same address on Ethereum,” ZachXBT explained.

Chimaev has since deleted his video on X along with anything else tying him to the crypto scam.

Khamzat Chimaev’s UFC Hype Train has slowed considerably

Khamzat Chimaev was scheduled to return to the Octagon for the first time in 2024 at UFC Saudi Arabia last month. Less than two weeks before his main event clash with Robert Whittaker, ‘Borz’ became “violently ill” and was forced to bow out of the fight.

Since storming into the UFC in 2020 and winning three fights in the span of two months, the Chechen has only competed twice in the last two years, his most recent coming against former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 284 in October. The ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ stepped in on short notice to replace Chimaev’s original opponent, Paulo Costa, and surrendered a majority decision.