Dana White believes Khamzat Chimaev is the real deal — especially after last night.
Chimaev remained undefeated after earning a hard-fought unanimous decision victory over Gilbert Burns in their back-and-forth welterweight war at UFC 273.
For once, “Borz” was heavily tested as he not only went the full three rounds, but also took plenty of damage and faced his fair share of adversity from the Brazilian.
In the end, he still did enough to come out on top and for White, it was one of the best fights he had ever seen.
It also was a test that Chimaev passed with flying colors.
“It’s one of the best fights I’ve ever seen, it’s one of the coolest fights I’ve ever been to,” White said at the post-fight press conference (via MMA Fighting). “The place was so loud, and people were going crazy. That fight was eclipsing the co-main and main event all week, and I was talking to [UFC commentator Joe] Rogan, and [UFC matchmaker] Sean [Shelby], and [UFC matchmaker] Mick [Maynard], and everyone else, think about this: when is the last time you saw a guy come out of nowhere, nobody knows who he is, then fights a couple fights and then fights the No. 2-ranked guy in the world and wins?
“When you get into the top-5 in the UFC, it’s no joke, man. Especially in that division. That division is straight killers. Tonight was a big test for him and he passed.”
Dana White: Chimaev Is The Real Deal
Of course, many expected Chimaev to just blitz through Burns in one round like he’s done so far in his UFC career.
For some observers, Chimaev’s stock may have gone down as he showed he wasn’t truly invincible or unstoppable. But for White, that’s just nonsense given the level of competition he was facing in Burns.
Not to mention the fact that Chimaev is human after all.
“Well he’s human, White said. “Any a****** that said that doesn’t think he’s human. He’s a human being and he just beat the No. 2 welterweight in the world with a couple of fights in the UFC. If you don’t think he’s the real deal, you’re out of your mind. Yeah, he’s human.”
Chimaev certainly belongs at the very elite level and looks like he will stay there for quite some time.
