Khamzat Chimaev makes bold comeback proposal to UFC with plans of fighting twice before year-end
Khamzat Chimaev has put forth a bold proposal to the UFC ahead of his highly-anticipated potential return to the Octagon. The undefeated MMA star has suggested that he's willing to compete twice before the 2023 calendar year comes to a close.
Chimaev's most recent fight witnessed him dominantly defeat Kevin Holland via first-round submission in a 180-pound catchweight bout at UFC 279 in September 2022.
'Borz' was originally scheduled to face Nate Diaz in a welterweight (170-pound) bout at UFC 279. However, Chimaev missed weight for the Diaz matchup and was later booked to fight Holland instead.
Khamzat Chimaev taps out Kevin Holland in the first round.
#UFC279 https://t.co/9kWjh1Bn5k
Following that, the consensus was that Chimaev's next fight would materialize soon. However, the Chechnya-born Swedish fighter hasn't competed since his UFC 279 appearance.
That said, Chimaev has now taken to his official Twitter account to indicate that he'd like the UFC to let him fight twice in 2023. The 29-year-old hinted that he's looking to compete at the UFC's Fight Night event in Paris on September 2nd and at the UFC 294 PPV (pay-per-view) in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on October 21st. 'Borz' tweeted:
"I am ready to fight in paris ready to fight after in abu dhabi let me smash somebody @ufc"
I am ready to fight in paris ready to fight after in abu dhabi let me smash somebody @ufc
UFC president Dana White addresses Khamzat Chimaev's next fight
In the aftermath of Khamzat Chimaev's weight miss fiasco last September, UFC president Dana White asserted that 'Borz's' next fight would be in the middleweight (185-pound) division. It was subsequently speculated that Chimaev, who's previously competed at both welterweight and middleweight, will indeed return to middleweight next.
It was believed that Khamzat Chimaev could potentially fight former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker, middleweight contender Paulo Costa, or former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Regardless, none of the aforementioned rumored matchups came to fruition.
Khamzat Chimaev's next opponent and comeback date have not been officially announced yet. 'Borz,' for his part, has consistently maintained that the UFC has not been booking his return to the octagon. On the contrary, Dana White claimed that Chimaev's personal issues are the reason behind his absence from the Octagon. Earlier this year, White spoke to TSN's Aaron Bronsteter and stated:
"That's on him, though. He's got stuff going on in his personal life. That's not because we're not getting him a fight. Obviously, you know how it goes here. I talk about this all the time. We have to get guys three fights a year. So if we don't get guys three fights a year, we have to pay them. The only way that wouldn't happen is if they have personal stuff going on."
Check out White's comments below:
Dana White with an update on Khamzat Chimaev.
20 minutes with Dana White: tsn.ca/ufc/video/dana… https://t.co/Gvc2pNcn19