"He hasn't learned how to lose"- Teddy Atlas recognizes Khamzat Chimaev as the UFC's new upcoming superstar
Legendary boxing trainer and analyst Teddy Atlas may be relatively new to MMA, but he likes what he sees in up and coming prospect Khamzat Chimaev.
Chimaev has fought four times in the UFC over the past two years and won every bout by finish. Not only that but he's barely taken any damage, having been hit with significant strikes a grand total of two times. And while all that was against opposition outside the top 10 at welterweight and middleweight, Teddy Atlas is already predicting Chimaev has what it takes to become a legend of the sport.
From The Fight podcast:
"He's undefeated, for me that's one of his strengths. Why? Because he hasn't learned how to lose. And he fights that way, like he doesn't want to learn. And he's never going to learn. He fights with that supreme confidence. That's not so easy to say. Not everyone fights with that supreme confidence, that belief where they that there's only one result when they get into that ring or that cage and the result's going to be them being the winner."
Atlas is also extremely high on the striking ability Chimaev has shown thus far:
"He's not a one trick pony. As I said, we know about the ground game and all that stuff. But when he strikes he's accurate. He's effective. He's a sharpshooter. He's a surgeon with those punches that I've seen. I'll finish by saying his ground game is frightening but his striking is pretty scary. It's like going to someone's house and there's a lion at the front door and tiger at the back door and an alligator in the living room. You better go to someone else's house."
Watch the full segment from The Fight with Teddy Atlas below:
Khamzat Chimaev is getting a big jump in competition next against Gilbert Burns
After defeating Li Jingliang at UFC 267 in October of 2021, Khamzat Chimaev was moved up to #11 on the official UFC welterweight rankings. But given how dominant he's been in all four of his UFC fights, the matchmakers have decided to jump him up to the very top of the division.
At UFC 273 on April 9th, Chimaev will face #2 ranked Gilbert Burns, whose sole loss over the past three years was to welterweight champ Kamaru Usman. Burns fared better than many against Usman, nearly knocking 'The Nigerian Nightmare' out in the first round of their fight at UFC 258 before getting TKO'd in the third.
ROCKED! BURNS HAS THE CHAMP REELING! #UFC258 https://t.co/HvPkyhYM7S
It will be hard for people to deny Khamzat Chimaev as a legit contender if he gets past Burns, even if the bout ends up lasting longer than all his previous fights.