Khamzat Chimaev Claims He Could’ve Waited For A Title Shot: Only Fighting Nate Diaz For Fun

"Borz" revealed that he could've not taken the fight with Diaz

Khamzat Chimaev, Nate Diaz
Credit: Khamzat Chimaev, Nate Diaz (via Instagram)
  • Khamzat Chimaev has claimed that he didn’t have to take the fight with Nate Diaz
  • Chimaev will be happy to get PPV points but isn’t sure if he will
  • He may move up to middleweight if the welterweight champion wants to wait long

Rising prospect Khamzat Chimaev has broken his silence about the upcoming bout with Nate Diaz. Fan-favorite Diaz has been out of competition since his last outing against Leon Edwards over a year ago at UFC 263 in Jun. 2021. Being on the last outing of his current deal with the UFC, Diaz has opted to fight out his contract without re-signing with the promotion.

Khamzat Chimaev claims he could’ve waited for a title shot

In a special appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, “Borz” talked about his match with Diaz and revealed that he didn’t have to take the fight.

“If I want to wait for who wins the fight (between) Usman and Leon, I got to fight with that guy. I don’t need to fight with Diaz. I’m fighting for fun, it’s fun for me to fight with that guy. Yeah, if I want to wait, it’s going to take long time.

“Usman fought one time in one year now. He has everything, he has money, he’s pound-for-pound number one, that’s why he wants to wait. It takes a long time and he doesn’t want to lose his belt.”

“Borz” will be happy to get PPV points but isn’t sure if he will

Traditionally, the UFC only offers pay-per-view points to their champions and sometimes, main event fighters who can justify the added earnings. Chimaev isn’t sure if he will receive a cut from the PPV for his headlining bout against Diaz at UFC 279.

“We will see, I don’t know actually. I don’t care so much about that sh*t. I’m happy with what I have now. If they give that (pay-per-view points), I will be happy. I hope so.”

Chimaev hints at moving up to 185 lbs if the welterweight king needs long to recover

When asked about his plans ahead, Chimaev teased a move up to 185 lbs. However, that will only happen if the winner of the welterweight title clash between champion Kamaru Usman and challenger Leon Edwards would need longer to recover.

“After Diaz, maybe I’m going to go up. If Usman wants to wait a long time, maybe, I’m going to go up to 84 kg (185 lb) and fight somebody there. Because I want to take both belts.”

Khamzat Chimaev will fight Nate Diaz in the main event of UFC 279 on Sept. 10 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Published on July 25, 2022 at 5:15 pm
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