Belal Muhammad predicts how Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight will go down at UFC 308
Belal Muhammad has shared his take on the upcoming UFC 308 co-main event: Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev. The UFC welterweight champion remains hopeful that the fight will happen, considering Chimaev’s history of pulling out of fights. He recently outlined his expectations for the matchup.
In a recent interview with Submission Radio, Muhammad expressed his support for Chimaev against Whittaker, highlighting the former's wrestling talents and predicting a win for him. The reigning 170-pound champion said:
"I'm just hoping that they make it a fight day, right? That's one of those fights I can't wait for it to come, and then to know that it's a week away is huge. But for myself, I think I got Khamzat taking him down. I don't know, I have him by submission. We've seen Whittaker get taken down by du Plessis with like a headlock, and Khamzat's wrestling is so good. To see how dominant he has been with wrestling, I think he's going to go in there and do the same exact thing to Whittaker.”
Muhammad believes Whittaker hasn't really faced anyone who can take him down and keep him there, except for Dricus du Plessis. However, Chimaev's grappling prowess and pressure are major weapons in his arsenal, per 'Remember the Name'.
Check out Belal Muhammad's comments below (12:41):
Chimaev has a perfect record of 13-0, but his health issues have forced him to withdraw from multiple fights. His blockbuster matchup with Nate Diaz crumbled in the eleventh hour due to a severe weight miss, and his slated bouts with Leon Edwards also fell through due to medical complications.
Earlier this year, 'Borz' was scheduled to take on Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia but pulled out again. 'The Reaper' made light work of Ikram Aliskerov on short notice and hopes his bout with Chimaev finally comes to fruition later this month.
Khamzat Chimaev is training with an Olympic gold medalist in preparation for Robert Whittaker
Khamzat Chimaev hasn't fought since October 2023, when he edged out a decision win over former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. He has been training with Paris Olympic gold medalist Razambek Zhamalov in preparation for his upcoming bout.
Speaking about his training experience, Chimaev captioned a recent Instagram post:
"Conducted training with the renowned freestyle fighter, the newly crowned Paris Olympic champion Razambek Zhamalov. You can learn a lot from such a master and adopt the enormous experience that he has."