UFC star Khamzat Chimaev proved that he was human when he was fourth against a former title -publisher.
Khamzat Chimaev was almost unbeatable during the first few fights of his UFC career, where he blurred the competition at an unprecedented pace. But Chimaev was first confronted with adversity in his UFC career when he took on Gilbert Burns at UFC 273.
Chimaev and Burns can be seen on a stacked map on UFC 273 in Jacksonville, with the head of the then UFC Vederweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski opposite the Korean zombie in the main event.
It was expected that Chimaev vs. Burns would steal the show on UFC 273, and it supplied with one of the largest Slugfests in the UFC.
Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images
Khamzat Chimaev was first fallen in UFC 273 Scare
Chimaev scored the first points of the fight in the opening minutes, hit burns with a stiff puncture and controlled him with his smothering wrestling. But Burns was able to limit the damage and come to round 2 when the tide started to turn.
Burns was able to fill Chimaev's Takedowns and force the fight upright, land large legs and to delay the progress of Chimaev. The fans and the Chimaev team all issued a universal sigh, while Burns landed a about -hand overhand that dropped the undefeated star, and Chimaev appeared on the point of his first career opposition.
But when seconds ticked in the second round, Chimaev was able to click with burns while the buzzer sounded, and a visibly bewildered Chimaev wieged to his corner. Many wondered whether or not Chimaev could fight much longer after taking Burns' biggest blow.
Chimaev bounced back in a large way in round 3, and the fight made it the full distance. After three rounds of high-octane action, Chimaev ran away with the unanimous decision victory with a shaving mastermarge.
Chimaev was planned to head UFC 279 only a few months later against Nate Diaz, before a failed weight cut forced him out of the main event slot. He defeated Kevin Holland through the first round entry before making the full -time transition to middleweight.
The most difficult test of Khamzat Chimaev is expected to be against a current title holder
After the middleweight wins on former UFC champions Kamaru Usman and Robert Whittaker, Chimaev is the likely next title -Uitdager of the reign of Dricus Du Plessis. The fight is expected to take place somewhere this summer, at the earliest, or for the intended return from the UFC to Abu Dhabi in the fall.
Du Plessis defeated Sean Strickland earlier this year in a UFC 312 -brake, put their rivalry aside and focused the focus on a collision with Chimaev. But Du Plessis is extremely convinced that he can stop the meteorical rise of Chimaev.
If Chimaev's fight with Burns has taught us something, it is that someone can be beaten. Chimaev has grown enormously since the Burns fight and seems to close his unbeaten run with a world championship.
Comments