"He was a good fighter" - Khamzat Chimaev gives credit to Conor McGregor for being a former two-division UFC champ
Khamzat Chimaev has praised MMA megastar Conor McGregor, referring to ‘Notorious’ as “a good fighter.” ‘Borz’ noted that at one stage of his career, McGregor was a two-division UFC champion and the world’s number-one pound-for-pound fighter.
In an appearance on the Hustle MMA podcast, Khamzat Chimaev opened up on multiple topics. The Chechnya-born Swedish fighter was asked about Conor McGregor’s recent losses and what he feels has happened to the Irishman. Chimaev responded by stating:
“Well, I don’t know. The man was a two-division champion; was the number-one pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He has money. He has everything. Why would he still want it?” Upon being asked whether the success has made McGregor less motivated, Chimaev said, “Maybe, yes. Competitive motivation doesn’t get affected by money, though. Maybe, he’s just tired of all the media. I don’t know. I haven’t experienced that yet. We’ll see.”
“I don’t know what happened, but the fact is he was a good fighter. Being a two-division champion isn’t like beating drunk guys up in the street.”
Watch Khamzat Chimaev speak about Conor McGregor’s recent setbacks in the video below:
Khamzat Chimaev had previously claimed that back in 2018, he flew all the way to Ireland to beat up Conor McGregor. This was in the lead-up to McGregor’s fight against Chimaev’s fellow Russian MMA stalwart, Dagestan’s Khabib Nurmagomedov.
‘The Chechen Wolf’ revealed that he wanted to fight Conor McGregor as he believed ‘Notorious’ had disrespected Chechens and Dagestanis. While Chimaev and McGregor haven’t fought one another, the Irish MMA icon recently surprised many in the combat sports world by directing kind words toward ‘Borz.’
Many believe that currently, the animosity Chimaev has towards McGregor isn’t as intense as it likely was a few years back.
Watch the Hustle MMA podcast episode featuring Khamzat Chimaev in the video below:
Khamzat Chimaev is angling for a fight against a longtime Conor McGregor rival
UFC sensation Khamzat Chimaev is potentially just one more win away from a shot at the UFC welterweight title. A marquee win over a big-name fighter could catapult Chimaev into a title fight later in 2022.
Speaking of which, Khamzat Chimaev has lately been lobbying for a fight against MMA legend Nate Diaz. The Stockton native has clarified that he’s uninterested in facing a “rookie” like ‘Borz.’ Regardless, Chimaev continues pursuing a fight against Diaz.
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Nate Diaz happens to be one of Conor McGregor’s biggest rivals, having faced him twice in the past. McGregor is recovering from a leg injury and is expected to return to the octagon in mid-2022.