The hype looks to be real for Khamzat Chimaev, but looks can be decieving. At least, that’s what Colby Covington believes about the Chechen superstar.
Not Impressed
While ‘Borz’ has made waves finishing his first 4 UFC fights, Colby Covington still doesn’t think much of the rising Chimaev. Covington is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Kamaru Usman earlier this month. Since then, he hasn’t been short of words when it comes to Usman, Jorge Masvidal and others, Chimaev being one of them.
It’s safe to say Covington isn’t impressed with the rapid success of Chimaev.
“He’s a joke.” Covington said on What The Heck. “He needs to beat someone worthy — someone in the top 5, someone in the top of the rankings, not just fight hand-picked people.
“What does he have, four UFC fights? The media loves to rush these kids and these hype jobs. This is fighting, man. People can get seriously hurt from rushing people like that.
“But if you guys want to rush a guy, take some time off of his life and send him for a hospital treatment, then, yeah, the door is open for that. I love doing good business and I love doing business with the UFC. It would be an honor to beat who they want me to beat, and if that’s the name they put in front of me, I can promise you that I’m gonna train extremely hard and I’m gonna show a new skill set the world hasn’t seen yet. You kind of see that from me every fight, I get better every fight. I add new layers to my game, so whoever they try and match me up with next, you’re gonna see those new layers and someone is gonna get seriously hurt.”
Fast Tracked
In 2020, ‘Borz’ would break through to the UFC, beating 3 unranked fighters in less than 70 days. They would all be in dominant fashion. Then, came a bout with top contender Leon Edwards, which would fall apart three times (due to COVID-19). Fast forward a year later and Chimaev is once again on the fast track, competing against ranked contender Li Jingliang.
While he did end up outclassing the #11 welterweight in the world, the road to get there was the road least traveled. And now, Chimaev is rumored to be facing someone in the top 5 next, with reports of him vs. Gilbert Burns possibly being next. The champ Kamaru Usman is often thrown into the mix also, when it comes to discussing who Chimaev will fight next.
Let’s just say Covington isn’t a fan of all of this hoopla.
“I think what we’ve learned with, not only in sports, not only in the UFC, but with this world and the way it’s changed these days, this is the handout generation,” Covington continued. “And it’s the participation trophy generation. This guy is nothing more than a participation trophy winner, a handout winner, and if that’s what they want to do, that’s what it is.
“I don’t really look into what other people are doing, or what they’re being awarded. I know my path. I know my journey. I know what it took to get here. I took the long road. I didn’t cut any corners, I didn’t cheat. I’ve never cheated in the octagon or outside of the octagon, and I took the hard road to get here. I feel like that’s the true American way. Nothing is given to us here and adversity is filled every single day. We have to overcome these obstacles if we want to make it to the path of success.
“I only stay in my lane and focus on my lane, not anyone else’s lane, just my lane. Big f*cking deal, he got a handout and a participation trophy. But in the long run no one will remember that. They’re just gonna remember what would happen inside that octagon.”
What do you make of Colby Covington’s comments against Khamzat Chimaev?
