Getty Khamzat Chimaev (L) punches Rhys McKee during a UFC event in July 2020.
No. 10-ranked UFC welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev made a bold promise after the promotion’s event at Madison Square Garden in New York City this weekend.
Chimaev is 4-0 in the UFC, which includes a stoppage win over Li Jingliang last month. “Borz” is viewed by many as the scariest rising force in MMA, finishing all of his UFC opponents and only getting hit by one significant strike altogether.
In the main event of UFC 268, 170-pound champion Kamaru Usman defended his title against Colby Covington, winning via unanimous decision. On Sunday, November 7, 2021, Chimaev took to Twitter to congratulate “The Nigerian Nightmare” on the victory.
And then he said he’s “coming” for Usman.
GettyColby Covington punches Kamaru Usman in their welterweight title bout during the UFC 268 event at Madison Square Garden on November 06, 2021 in New York City.
“Congratulations good job bro @USMAN84kg I’m coming for you brother I’m coming,” Chimaev tweeted. He also tagged Covington in the tweet and used the crying emoji, as well as Nate Diaz’s name along with the smoking and coffin emojis. See below:
Congratulations good job bro @USMAN84kg
I’m coming for you brother I’m coming 👊🏼😉
@ColbyCovMMA 😢
@NateDiaz209 🚬⚰️
Chimaev hopes to return to the Octagon before the year is up, campaigning for a top-10 bout. The same day, he shared a screenshot of welterweight’s top nine, writing: “December Rock ‘n’ roll baby. Who who who?” See below:
December Rock ‘n’ roll baby 👊🏼
who who who ?
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Neil Magny Said He Wants to Fight Chimaev
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.
A man ranked ahead of Borz is down for a scrap.
No. 8-ranked welterweight Neil Magny spoke with MMA Junkie after Chimaev’s victory over Jingliang at UFC 267 on October 30, 2021, telling the outlet that he’s ready, and “excited,” to accept a fight against Borz for December.
The two have gone back and forth on social media a few times over the past year as well, with both combatants showing interest in a future fight.
“I was going about my day after the fight happened and I was getting messages with the same old routine saying, ‘No one wants to fight this guy.’ ‘I doubt on Monday when the new rankings come out that anyone in the top 10 will fight this guy.’ ‘He’s just a monster and everyone is going to do their best to avoid him,’” Magny told the outlet. “I’m sitting there reading these comments over and over again like, ‘What? No way. I wanted to fight this guy a year ago.’ Nothing has changed today. He did come back, he did look impressive against Jingliang, but for me it adds fuel to the fire. It makes me want to fight him more than I did last year.
“Maybe it was a good thing this fight got pushed off as long as it did. A year ago I would have 100 percent might’ve looked past him, like, ‘Ah whatever. Some new kid that thinks he’s hot stuff. School this kid and show him what’s up.’ Coming out here and beating Jingliang the way he did, it definitely made me take a step back like, ‘Oh damn. This kid’s legit.’ He definitely has some skills that he brings to the table. To me, that’s the kind of fight that makes it more exciting – the guys that make you have to stay on your A-game. When I saw what he did to Jingliang, that made me more excited to fight him.”
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Magny Is Prepared to Fight in December
Magny offering up his services to Chimaev works within Borz’s timeline as well. According to Magny, the UFC had offered him a fight for December 18, 2021, but the unnamed opponent pulled out due to injury. “The Haitian Sensation” still wants to fight then, and he hopes it’ll be Chimaev standing across the Octagon from him.
“I want to go to war against a guy like Chimaev,” Magny said. “I know for a fact that I can drag him into deep water and beat him. So, that’s what I’m looking to do against him.”
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Khamzat Chimaev’s Bold Promise: ‘I’m Coming For You’