Rising UFC superstar Khamzat Chimaev was on the verge of early retirement, but now the 26-year-old appears to be eyeing a return to the Octagon against Neil Magny. Chimaev posted an image on Instagram of himself standing in front of an opponent who wasn’t pictured in the shot, and he tagged welterweight contender Magny in the post. The implication is that Chimaev wants to fight Magny next, and that must be music to the ears of UFC president Dana White.
You can see Chimaev’s post below.
Chimaev recently pulled out his March bout against Leon Edwards due to lingering effects of COVID-19. It was the second time the rising star had to drop out of the same fight.
Edward is now facing Belal Muhammad on March 13.
Two weeks ago, Chimaev (9-0, 3-0 UFC) announced via social media that he might be walking away from the sport.
Now, it appears the fighter plans on continuing his career vs. Magny.
The two stars have traded words before.
During their last online dustup, Chimaev berated the 33-year-old American for his loss to Michael Chiesa in January.
@KChimaev @MikeMav22 Make sure you keep that same energy when you see me in person! I’ll give you my word, that I’m slaaping you on sight 👋 and teaching some respect!
Magny replied, “Make sure you keep that same energy when you see me in person! I’ll give you my word, that I’m slapping you on sight and teaching some respect!”
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Chimaev: ‘Believe the Hype’
Chimaev has been on a tear since entering the UFC last year.
His fast knockout of Gerald Meerschaert in his last fight broke the Internet, and it was his third straight finish in as many UFC fights.
BELIEVE THE HYPE 💯
@KChimaev is FOR. REAL. #UFCVegas11
But Chimaev has yet to face a contender as skilled and accomplished as Magny.
So Chimaev vs. Magny seems like the right fight at the right time for the rising superstar.
Chimaev has not had any trouble with the competition he’s faced so far in the UFC, but Magny would be a huge step up the ladder.
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Will Chimaev Recapture Momentum?
Some might wonder whether Chimaev will be able to recapture the momentum he earned by decimating his first three UFC opponents last year.
When the fighter teased an early retirement a couple of weeks ago, some argued that his fast rise had come to a screeching halt.
But at least one of the contenders at 170 believes Chimaev can get right back to where he was before the retirement talk.
Sure, Muhammad benefited from Chimaev dropping out of his fight with Edwards, but Muhammad hopes to see “Borz” (which means “Wolf”) back on the prowl again soon.
“He’s probably just really frustrated that he can’t fight,” Muhammad told Heavy. “He’s on the sidelines now. He’s young. He’s been super active. He had that heat. Everybody wanted to see him fight. He wants to perform.”
So Muhammad disagreed with the notion that Chimaev will have taken a step backward in his career because of his retirement talk. In fact, Muhammad said he hopes to see Chimaev back in the cage and better than ever, and that it’s exactly what he expects to see happen.
“We’re fighters, and we want to fight,” Chimaev said. “So I can understand where his stress is coming from and where his anger is coming from. I hope he gets better.”
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Khamzat Chimaev Reveals Future Fight Plans