Getty Khamzat Chimaev of Chechnya celebrates after his knockout victory over Gerald Meerschaert in their middleweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on September 19, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
One of the UFC’s fastest rising stars hopes to return to action this summer against a top-10 contender.
Khamzat Chimaev recently pulled out his March 13th bout with No. 3 ranked welterweight Leon Edwards due to lingering physical effects from COVID-19. It was the second time “Borz” had to drop the fight with Edwards because of the coronavirus, pulling out in January as well.
Edwards has moved on from the match and is now scheduled to fight No. 13 Belal Muhammad in the main event of UFC Vegas 21 on March 13.
Chimaev took to social media on Friday to share that he plans to fight in June. He also took aim at No. 9 welterweight Neil Magny, challenging him to a contest.
The two have beefed on Twitter in the past and at one point, Magny told Chimaev he would slap him “on sight.”
In January, the UFC shared photos on Twitter of Magny’s main event bout with Michael Chiesa during UFC Fight Island 8. Chiesa dominated Magny most of the fight with his superior grappling, winning via unanimous decision (49-46 x3) on January 20.
Borz reacted to the UFC’s post, tagging Magny’s name and sharing the otter and laughing emojis.
“Make sure you keep that same energy when you see me in person!” Magny responded to Chimaev’s tweet. “I’ll give you my word, that I’m [slapping] you on sight and teaching some respect!” See below:
@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!
Nearly a month later, Chimaev replied to Magny’s comment. The fighter from Chechnya, Russia wrote, “Be ready in June i’m going to give you real Chechen inside the cage and outside.”
Chimaev also tagged UFC president Dana White and matchmaker Sean Shelby in the tweet. See below:
Chimaev then followed the tweet up with one word, “Slap.”
At the time of this writing, Magny has yet to respond to Chimaev.
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Chimaev Went 3-0 in the UFC in 2020, Undefeated as an MMA Fighter
GettyKhamzat Chimaev of Czechia (L) punches Rhys McKee of Northern Ireland in their welterweight fight on July 25 at Yas Island.
Borz (9-0) burst on the UFC scene in July, debuting against John Phillips in a middleweight bout at UFC Fight Island 1. Chimaev won the fight by second-round submission and then 10 days later, he defeated Rhys McKee by TKO in a welterweight bout at UFC Fight Island 3.
Less than two months later, Chimaev moved back up to 185 pounds and fought Gerald Meerschaert at UFC Vegas 11, knocking out the 45-fight veteran in only 17 seconds.
Although two of Chimaev’s three UFC matches have been at middleweight, he is making a run at 170-pound gold. And even though Magny is coming off a rough loss to Chiesa, he is still a highly respected veteran that could measurably boost Chimaev’s stock
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Like Chimaev, Magny Also Won 3 UFC Fights in 2020
GettyNeil Magny punches Anthony Rocco Martin in their welterweight bout during the UFC 250 event at UFC APEX on June 06, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Magny (24-8) rolled into the January bout with Chiesa riding a three-fight win streak, defeating Li Jingliang, Anthony Rocco Martin and former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler in 2020.
Losing to Chiesa sent Magny back to the drawing board, but a bounce-back victory over Chimaev would likely be meaningful for “The Haitian Sensation’s” championship aspirations.
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UFC’s Khamzat Chimaev Targets New Opponent, Return Date