Khamzat Chimaev will be operating by feel at UFC 279.
The rising star Khamzat Chimaev will have a tough test ahead of him at UFC 279. He will be facing longtime UFC veteran Nate Diaz in the main event of UFC 279, a fight many think is his to win. Diaz has been looking for an out of the UFC lately and the bout with Chimaev seems to be his exit ticket. Even though Diaz has been on a bit of a losing streak Chimaev cannot overlook this match-up.
Chimaev has been nearing a title shot and perhaps with a win on Saturday night could find himself in the running for the belt. There is a trilogy fight between former champion Kamaru Usman and newly crowned champion Leon Edwards that is set to be made but the winner of that fight could be facing Chimaev. After such a great start of 5-0 in the UFC, Chimaev seems to be a prodigy in MMA. He seems unstoppable at this point in his young career but surprisingly he rarely has a game plan. He sat down and spoke to Daniel Cormier about his upcoming fight, his past fights, and his plan in the cage.
“Going on hard punches and maybe knock him out?” Chimaev said of his plan for Nate Diaz. “If he goes down? Like so meet him with some ground and pound and smash him. I don’t know. I don’t have some plans. All the fights is like that, going, like my instincts, my body just works. My mind works inside there.”
Khamzat Chimaev has one mission in fights, and that is to go forward and try to take his opponent’s head
Chimaev went on to say he knew he had defeated Gilbert Burns in his last bout because Burns cried when the fight was over. He says if you are crying afterward, then you lost the fight. The bout with Burns was the only time in his career that Chimaev was taken to a decision. He fought all five rounds and seemed tired at the end. Some feel this can be the path to victory for Diaz in this next fight.
“I always get tired, when you’re working but I don’t care but my heart said to me go, I go, I win my fight and he’s saying like maybe it was five rounds and in a way if he needs five rounds, last minute why he look at the watch and running out from me, you know, I put down all from first minute to last minute you know, I just going forward,” he said. “It wasn’t my game plan that I was going to show I want to go and take his head.”
Chimaev is ready for another war in this headlining fight with Diaz. He plans on ending Diaz’s run in the UFC and move right into title contention.
Watch the entire interview here:
