UFC fighters like Khamzat Chimaev, Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington, and Justin Gaethje were in a jovial mood on Wednesday…
UFC fighters like Khamzat Chimaev, Jorge Masvidal, Colby Covington, and Justin Gaethje were in a jovial mood on Wednesday after Donald Trump was declared the next president of the United States.
Trump is now two out of three in presidential elections (regardless of what Renato Moicano thinks about the 2020 results) and will move back into 1600 Pennsylvania on January 20 when he is sworn in as the 47th president of the United States.
Despite early polling numbers favoring incumbent Kamala Harris, Trump outlasted the competition and overperformed in some surprising areas to secure well over the 270 electoral votes necessary to win.
As expected, a large number of UFC fighters celebrated the victory on social media. Ben Askren was especially excited over the result, posting multiple times throughout the day. To be fair, he doesn’t have much else to do these days.
Chimaev, UFC Fighters, and MMA stars celebrate Trump’s re-election on X
UFC fighter Khamzat Chimaev has a relationship with the Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov. This is a…
UFC fighter Khamzat Chimaev has a relationship with the Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov. This is a controversial position for the UFC to continue to support ‘The Wolf.’
Ramzan Kadyrov and MMA
As reported by journalist Karim Zidan at Sports Politika, connections between Kadyrov and MMA fighters have raised ethical concerns and potentially led to career limitations for some athletes. There are reports suggesting that UFC fighters may be facing visa bans due to their ties with Kadyrov.
Kadyrov’s involvement in MMAgoes beyond mere support for athletes. He has been accused of using his fight club as a recruitment tool for his private militia, with some fighters allegedly being transformed into hired thugs and soldiers. In December 2020, the United States Department of the Treasury issued sanctions targeting Kadyrov and his fight club, marking the first time a country had taken such action against Kadyrov’s sports investments.
Journalists covering this topic, such as Karim Zidan, have faced challenges and even threats for their reporting on Kadyrov’s involvement in MMA.
Ramzan Kadyrov is widely considered a war criminal due to his long history of human rights abuses and involvement in atrocities. Since taking power in 2007, Kadyrov has ruled Chechnya with an iron fist, using his security forces to brutally suppress any opposition or dissent. Under Kadyrov’s leadership, Chechen authorities have been implicated in widespread torture, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and arbitrary detentions.
Kadyrov’s influence in MMA extends to high-profile fighters, including UFC athletes including Khamzat Chimaev. One of the most notable examples is his relationship with Khamzat Chimaev. The connection between Kadyrov and Chimaev has become a subject of recent concern.
Ramzan Kadyrov and Khamzat Chimaev
Former UFC athlete Brendan Schaub believes that the UFC working with Ramzan Kadyrov and Khamzat Chimaev is cause for concern. On his podcast, Schaub explained:
“There’s a lot going on behind the scenes with Khamzat that people don’t know about… That Chechen dictator, his two sons were his cornermen, did you know that? So then, it’s like, how close is he with this dictator?… Do you want that to be the face of the middleweight division? One of the faces of the UFC, knowing there are these ties to this horrible dictator.
“If you’re DDP [Dricus du Plessis] and Strickland [Sean], whoever wins that fight, which they’re probably going to do next… You’re gonna ask that champ to only fight in the Middle East? Well, that ain’t fair… To make these guys go to the Middle East is insane.”
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland are set to challenge Dricus du Plessis for his UFC middleweight title. Imagine you’re…
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland are set to challenge Dricus du Plessis for his UFC middleweight title. Imagine you’re sitting down for dinner at a restaurant. Before you sit two options; a freshly cooked steak, or an unspiced pile of stale bread. Which would you choose?
Khamzat Chimaev or Sean Strickland
South Africa’s Dricus du Plessis (22-2) was able to capture the UFC middleweight crown in a close split decision against the US-born Sean Strickland. Afterward, ‘Stillknocks’ defended this title against former champion Israel Adesanya by submission. Now, du Plessis is ready for a fight and has two potential opponents in front of him.
Sean Strickland (29-6), former titleholder, is option A. Or, the UFC can choose ‘The Wolf’ Khamzat Chimaev (14-0) is option B.
‘Tarzan’ Strickland believes that he is entitled to a rematch for the title due to his status as a former champion. The US-born athlete believes that his title shot is already agreed to for early 2025. But based on what Dricus du Plessis has said, it is not set in stone just yet.
Khamzat Chimaev
‘Borz’ Khamzat Chimaev is a fan-favorite fighter known for his aggressive fighting style. He looks to finish his opponents whether on the feet or on the ground. Of his 14 wins, 12 have come by way of KO/TKO or submission, giving him an 85% finishing rate. Compared to Strickland’s 51%.
For what the UFC likes to see, Chimaev has to be their pick. He is popular among fans around the world and has exciting fighting capabilities. Strickland has neither of these skills. The US-born athlete is known for his trash talk outside the ring, aggressive fighting in sparring, and boring fights inside the octagon. His highlight reel leaves much to be desired.
Sean Strickland
Let’s compare recent wins. Strickland struggled to defeat Paulo Costa. Over five rounds, he landed 182 strikes. This means he performed worse than Marvin Vettori did against the same opponent, who landed 190. Despite having a close match against the du Plessis, no one is clamoring to see Strickland fight the South African once again. It was a plain fight. And in Strickland’s match right afterward, against Costa, he showed nothing new. So why would a rematch go any different?
Conversely, ‘Borz’ earned a quick first-round submission against the former champion Robert Whittaker. It only took him less than four minutes to put ‘The Reaper’ away. Skilled fighters such as Adesanya, Dricus du Plessis, and Yoel Romero, could not perform this feat. That was the fastest anyone has put Whittaker away in his UFC career.
Of course, ‘The Wolf’ is not without his flaws. He has bounced between middleweight and welterweight due to weight issues. At middleweight, he has hardly defeated any career middleweight aside from Whittaker. Plus, illnesses seem to plague his career.
The popular Khamzat Chimaev is a breath of fresh air with an exciting style. To add insult to Strickland, Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier, and Dricus du Plessis, have all said that ‘Borz’ should get the title shot ahead of him. For a good fight, Chimaev is your guy. But if you need a sensitive man to throw a fit over gay people or women, Sean Strickland is your guy.
Dricus Du Plessis is not backing down from the new big challenge that awaits him in the middleweight division. At UFC 308, Khamzat Chimaev delivered a statement performance to put himself into the title picture. The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, […]
The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, he’s the most exciting option as the next title challenger.
Many believe that based on some of his previous fights, “Borz” is extremely dangerous in the opening round but his aggression and intensive grappling quickly drains his gas tank. In a recent interview with ESPN MMA, Du Plessis was asked whether surviving the early stages of a fight with Chimaev would be his focus for a game plan.
He made the point that fighters would often say the same thing about him until he proved in his last two title fights that he can maintain a consistent pace in the championship rounds. The South African champion said that approaching Chimaev with this mindset would put him at a disadvantage from the very start.
“Yeah, I’ll be very careful in that sense. I think a lot of guys made that same mistake. I think Sean Strickland made that mistake with me, maybe even Israel. Saying, ‘Listen, get past round one and two with this guy and he’s going to be tired and that’s where you start gaining,’ but if you have a defensive mindset, you’re going to be on the back foot the whole time, especially with a offensive heavy fighter like Khamzat in the offensive wrestling stage and myself in the offensive everything stage.”
Dricus Du Plessis is not backing down from the new big challenge that awaits him in the middleweight division. At UFC 308, Khamzat Chimaev delivered a statement performance to put himself into the title picture. The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, […]
The undefeated contender submitted former champion Robert Whittaker in the first round and in many people’s eyes, including Du Plessis’, he’s the most exciting option as the next title challenger.
Many believe that based on some of his previous fights, “Borz” is extremely dangerous in the opening round but his aggression and intensive grappling quickly drains his gas tank. In a recent interview with ESPN MMA, Du Plessis was asked whether surviving the early stages of a fight with Chimaev would be his focus for a game plan.
He made the point that fighters would often say the same thing about him until he proved in his last two title fights that he can maintain a consistent pace in the championship rounds. The South African champion said that approaching Chimaev with this mindset would put him at a disadvantage from the very start.
“Yeah, I’ll be very careful in that sense. I think a lot of guys made that same mistake. I think Sean Strickland made that mistake with me, maybe even Israel. Saying, ‘Listen, get past round one and two with this guy and he’s going to be tired and that’s where you start gaining,’ but if you have a defensive mindset, you’re going to be on the back foot the whole time, especially with a offensive heavy fighter like Khamzat in the offensive wrestling stage and myself in the offensive everything stage.”
Joe Rogan thinks Khamzat Chimaev should get the next shot at middleweight champ Dricus Du Plessis. After a year-long…
Joe Rogan thinks Khamzat Chimaev should get the next shot at middleweight champ Dricus Du Plessis.
After a year-long layoff due to illness, travel restrictions, and whatever else is going on behind the scenes, ‘Borz’ returned to the Octagon at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi for a high-stakes co-main event clash with former 185-pound titleholder Robert Whittaker. And while Chimaev was listed as a favorite to come out on top, what happened was something nobody expected to see.
Chimaev shot in for a takedown within sends, putting Whittaker on the mat and eventually making ‘The Reaper’ tap out via a vicious neck crank in the opening round. Initially, it appeared as though Chimaev had dislocated his jaw.
That turned out to not be the case, but Whittaker did suffer a rather nasty injury, later revealing that multiple teeth in his mouth had been pushed in by the force Chimaev generated.
Khamzat Chimaev is ‘The Guy’
Reacting to Chimaev’s dominant performance during his JRE Fight Companion, the longtime UFC color commentator suggested that ‘Borz’ should be next in line for a title shot.
”That guy’s [Chimaev] a scary a** motherf*cker. That grappling is next level. He’s a beast… Once he gets a hold of you, it’s so dangerous…You give him the title shot. Holy sh*t. He gets a title shot, I think. Not just [beating Whittaker in the first round], but ran through him.
“He didn’t get touched. He ran through him and strangled him in the first round. He might be the guy…Think about this at [185 pounds]. So this guy was killing himself to get to 170. At 185, he’s the f*cking man.”
Of course, nobody would be surprised if the promotion decided to strike while the iron is hot and hand Chimaev his first UFC title opportunity instead of a rematch between Strickland and ‘DDP.’ It certainly wouldn’t be the first time the UFC has passed up the next man in line for something a little more exciting. Just ask Magomed Ankalev.