Khamzat Chimaev would lose fight against 'more technical' and 'more intelligent' Shavkat Rakhmonov, claims Vicente Luque
Shavkat Rakhmonov may not receive the same level of hype that Khamzat Chimaev gets, but Vicente Luque believes 'Nomad' would win in a fight against 'Borz.'
Rakhmonov is coming off a dominant win over Neil Magny that saw him control Magny on the ground with ease before locking up a guillotine choke in the second round. The win propelled Rakhmonov to No. 10 in the welterweight rankings and reignited talk of an eventual fight against Chimaev.
The sub from Shavkat. Easy work for him. Has never lost nor seen a 3rd round in the UFC. #UFCVegas57 https://t.co/C9szpKdBAV
In a new interview with 'The Schmo,' Vicente Luque shared his thoughts on the potentially explosive showdown.
"Right now I would pick Rakhmonov, he's more technical, he's a more intelligent fighter, I would say. And he's really dangerous. I've trained with him and everywhere, standup, on grappling as well. So I would put him as favorite. But Chimaev is tough, he showed it against Gilbert [Burns]. But I think Gilbert showed everyone 'Hey, he's not that monster that everybody said.'"
Watch 'The Schmo' and Vicente Luque discuss Shavkat Rakhmonov below:
Khamzat Chimaev threw all strategy out the window in his epic UFC 273 fight against Gilbert Burns, much to his coach's chagrin. Footage from the corner cam in between the second and third round showed Andreas Michael screaming at Chimaev to stop brawling. 'Borz' did not stop brawling, but he did do enough to win a close 29-28x3 decision over Burns.
Whether Chimaev will follow his corner's instructions better in his future fights remains to be seen. Through his entire career, Chimaev has only shown off a bulldozer style of fighting. That's far from the methodical jab-heavy approach Michael wanted him to use against Burns.
Khamzat's coach snapped in between rounds...asked him not to brawl but stick to the game plan. https://t.co/4lX17y1Rcb
Shavkat Rakhmonov reacts to Khamzat Chimaev calling him a "chump"
With Kazakhstan and Chechnya both sitting next to the Caspian Sea, there's a lot of MMA fans from both countries that want to see Shavkat Rakhmonov and Khamzat Chimaev fight. Rakhmonov has generally avoided trash-talking 'Borz,' but a recent quote from 'Nomad' had Chimaev seething. Rakhmonov said:
"There's nothing extraordinary in what he does. Certainly he's a good wrestler and he does a great job out there, he feels confident too unlike his opponents. But if we fight it might be a different picture, a different fight."
Someone posted that quote to Instagram, and Chimaev commented:
“Who’s that chump?!”
Shavkat Rakhmonov replied:
"Let him say it to my face, not in comments. We’ll talk when we see each other. I’ve nothing against him. We’re just opponents and I’m not gonna insult him. I’m not gonna insult his family or nation. We’ll fight one day and then see who’s better.”
With Rakhmonov climbing the welterweight rankings quickly, a showdown with Chimaev seems inevitable. The only question is when.