Getty (L-R) Gilbert Burns meets with Khamzat Chimaev.
UFC superstar Israel Adesanya backed Khamzat Chimaev to do the unthinkable against Nate Diaz at UFC 279.
Chimaev will make his five-round debut on Sep. 10 in the main event of UFC 279 with Diaz at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Going into the bout off a win over former title challenger Gilbert Burns in April, Chimaev opened as a massive betting favorite. He is expected to steamroll Diaz in what could be his final appearance under the UFC banner.
Ahead of the highly-anticipated matchup, the reigning middleweight champion Adesanya gave his take on Chimaev vs. Diaz, backing the rising prospect to possibly create history by finishing the Stockton native.
“Win, lose, or draw, it’s always a brawl,” Adesanya said via Low Kick MMA. “After every fight, because he wants to fight everyone ‘I kill everybody,’ ” Adesanya continued, “I feel like they’re doing Nate wrong by trying to feed him this up-and-comer who’s just destroying everyone. It’s hard to finish Nate, but if someone could do it, it might be this guy.”
The Nigerian-Kiwi also talked about another exciting match on the main card, weighing in with a bold prediction for another welterweight up-and-comer.
“[Kevin Holland] is gifted,” Adesanya said of Kevin Holland vs Daniel Rodriguez at UFC 279, “Kevin’s faster, he’s not bad, he’s tough, but he gets hit. I’m going to pick Kevin in this one.”
Adesanya Could See Diaz Win
Having been the underdog in various notable bouts, Diaz will not be fazed about the money line for the last fight on his contract with the promotion. The traditional slow starter is notorious for his insane durability, and can never be counted out in a contest, especially as it goes on longer.
Diaz infamously choked out Conor McGregor, the biggest draw in the sport, in their first outing in Mar. 2016 at UFC 196. Adesanya could see Diaz pull off a massive upset but reckons it will take some resilience.
If Nate’s going to win, and I think he’s going to win, he’s going to finish him later,” “I think Chimaev’s going to gas around the third, fourth, fifth, and then Nate just takes over, TKO or submits him.”
Adesanya Breaks Down UFC 279 Co-Main Event
Fan favorite Tony Ferguson will mark his return to action in a sudden move up to welterweight against Li Jingliang at UFC 279. Ferguson hit a skid in his professional career, dropping four in a row to elite competition. He is coming off the first knockout defeat of his career to Michael Chandler in May at UFC 274 and will look to get back to the winning ways in the co-main event of the night.
Adesanya believes that Ferguson needs to re-ignite the fire that helped him rack up an impressive 12-fight win streak but ultimately backed Jingliang to come out on top.
“Co-main of the evening, ‘The Leech’ vs ‘El Cucuy’ for the welterweight showdown between Tony Ferguson vs Li Jingliang. Ferguson needs to get back to the s*** that made him really good. I thought it was scrambles. Anyway, I’m going to pick ‘The Leech’ because I think he’s got momentum on his side.”