Khamzat Chimaev anticipates news on his next fight soon and hopes to face former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman in Abu Dhabi.
Khamzat Chimaev is anticipating news on his next fight soon. As the UFC is headed to Abu Dhabi this fall for its upcoming UFC 294 pay-per-view, it is speculated that Chimaev could be part of the lineup. He emerged as a star when he first fought for the promotion at a pair of “Fight Island” events in 2020 during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Chimaev is presently in Abu Dhabi training and believes the UFC plans to book him for the Oct. 21 PPV, ideally against former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman.
“UFC told us we have a fight in Abu Dhabi, so that’s what I’m waiting for,” Chimaev shared on his YouTube channel. “I’m already here in Dubai, living here, training camp, everything is good, so I’ve been in shape a long time ago. I’ve been in Thailand training camp, I’ve been here training camp, I’ve been in Sweden training, so just waiting for the opponent and the contract, so we’ll see what’s going to happen. Usman wants to fight. I’ll make his last fight. He wants money, he knows where the money is. Everyone knows the money. Now I’m going to fight this guy in Abu Dhabi and smash his face, finish him, then they have to give me that title shot.”
Usman is experiencing the first losing streak of his career, with back-to-back welterweight title fight losses to Leon Edwards. The longtime champion has been quiet about his potential career plans. Meanwhile, Chimaev hasn’t fought since defeating Kevin Holland at UFC 279 last September and is eager to step back into the octagon. He believes that when the UFC comes calling, he will not have a shortage of opponent options as he considers himself to be a top drawing act.
“I’m the biggest name without the belt, so when you fight with me it’s more money, more fans,” Chimaev said. “When I fight, everyone is waiting for my fights. When I fought with Gilbert [Burns], we weren’t the main event, everyone was waiting for us. Even Cristiano Ronaldo, a famous guy, a legend from football, a lot of guys are asking me when am I going to fight, when I smash somebody? This is the fight business, everybody has to fight and make money. If you don’t sell tickets, you don’t make money.” Chimaev sees Usman as a logical option to get him closer to the championship opportunity that he’s been chasing in either welterweight or middleweight divisions. “I want to say to Usman, I am ready, just sign the contract. Let’s fight. Let’s make money. You want the money, you want the money fight, let’s go. I’m going to squeeze your head off. [Weight class] it doesn’t matter, let’s go, let’s fight. The weight classes, if you feel the best, you don’t need to speak about weight class. I feel the best, for me it doesn’t matter, I cut on fight night to [170] or [185], all weight classes. I’m the king.”