Getty Khamzat Chimaev & Conor McGregor
MMA combatant Khamzat Chimaev is on a meteoric rise in the UFC and he recently compared himself to Conor McGregor.
But he didn’t compare his star-power trajectory to McGregor’s. Instead, he spoke about the Irishman’s level of competition relative to his own. Chimaev has only fought four times inside the Octagon, finishing all four opponents within the distance. And most impressively, he’s only been hit with one significant strike.
Chimaev, who has decided to compete as a welterweight, holds one win over a top-15 fighter. In October 2021, he submitted Li Jingliang at UFC 267. “Borz” has a professional MMA record of 10-0 with 10 finishes, and he’s taking a massive step forward in terms of competition. Next month, he’ll fight No. 2-ranked 170 pounder Gilbert Burns at UFC 273.
During a recent episode of his “Smesh Bros” YouTube show, Chimaev reacted to his detractors who have denounced his performances in the UFC, stating that he hasn’t fought top-level competition. Chimaev pointed to the fact that for their first four UFC fights, McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Jon Jones didn’t run through the gauntlet either.
“Who did like, go in the cage, ten fights, ten finishes?” Chimaev said via Middle Easy. “The guys tell like, ‘Oh, he didn’t fight this guy, he didn’t fight that guy,’ but the guys who’s the best guys – Jon Jones, his first four fights in UFC, he get the punch. I didn’t get the punch, bro.
“We don’t say, his first fights, he didn’t get the best ones – the guys, you know, like, super good guys. Nobody. Conor [McGregor] didn’t get that, crazy good guys in his first fights. Nobody. Khabib [Nurmagomedov] didn’t get crazy good guys. I just need the time.”
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Taking a Look at McGregor, Jones & Nurmagomedov’s First 4 Wins Inside the Octagon
Looking at it through a 2022 lens, McGregor defeated some impressive names in his first four fights as a UFC athlete. He defeated Marcus Brimage, future featherweight champion Max Holloway, “The Ultimate Fighter” season 14 winner Diego Brandao and future interim lightweight champion Dustin Poirier.
In Jones’ case, his first four UFC bouts were against Andre Gusmao, “The Ultimate Fighter” season one finalist Stephan Bonnar, Jake O’Brien and “The Ultimate Fighter” season three standout Matt Hamill.
And for Nurmagomedov, he got his hand raised over some notable names as well in his first four contests. He beat Kamal Shalorus, Gleison Tibau, Thiago Tavares and Abel Trujillo.
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Chimaev Has 2 Wins as a 185 Pounder & 2 as a 170 Pounder
Borz has decided to stick in the welterweight lane, however he’s fought twice as a middleweight in the UFC. His first fight in the Octagon, which took place in July 2020, was against John Phillips at 185 pounds. Then, he fought at welterweight 10 days later against Rhys McKee.
A few months later, Chimaev went back to middleweight and took out Gerald Meerschaert. And after over a year hiatus away from the sport, Chimaev earned his big win over Jingliang.
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