Free fight: Watch Khamzat Chimaev’s bloody brawl with Gilbert Burns

This weekend Khamzat Chimaev is scheduled to headline his first ever UFC main event. At UFC 279 he’ll be meeting Nate Diaz in a…

By: Tim Bissell | 9 months ago
Free fight: Watch Khamzat Chimaev’s bloody brawl with Gilbert Burns
Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

This weekend Khamzat Chimaev is scheduled to headline his first ever UFC main event. At UFC 279 he’ll be meeting Nate Diaz in a bout that could further the Chechen’s rep as super prospect turned bona fide title contender.

Chimaev’s rise to the top of MMA has been meteoric, thanks to a blistering 2020 where he won three fights in quick succession and in devastating fashion. In his UFC debut he defeated John Phillips with a d’arce choke. He then TKO’d Rhys Mckee. He followed those wins up with a 17-second KO of Gerald Meerschaert.

These wins had UFC President Dana White calling Chimaev a future champion. The UFC attempted to fast-track Chimaev up the UFC’s welterweight rankings with a match-up with current champion Leon Edwards. However, COVID-19 got in the way.

After a lengthy spell on the sidelines, battling severe symptoms of COVID, Chimaev returned in late 2021 and beat Li Jingliang by submission.

That win reignited the hype around Chimaev and he was soon booked with an opponent designed to test whether or not he was ready for the big time.

At UFC 273 in April, Chimaev met Gilbert Burns, who was just a year removed from fighting Kamaru Usman for the welterweight title.

You can watch that contest, which won Fight of the Night honours, below — for free:

It’s safe to say that Chimaev came through his test against Burns with flying colours. He didn’t score a finish over the wily Brazilian, but he showed he deserved to be fighting the who’s who of the welterweight (and maybe middleweight) division.

If he beats Diaz on Saturday, which many are expecting he will, Chimaev will be in prime position to fight for the 170 lbs belt in the near future.



LIVE! Watch UFC 286 PPV On ESPN+ Here!

CHAMPIONSHIP TRILOGY! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to The O2 in London England, on Sat., March 18, 2023, with newly-minted Welterweight kingpin, Leon Edwards, running it back with former 170-pound champion, Kamaru Usman, for a third (and likely final) time. In UFC 286’s pay-per-view (PPV) co-main event, all-action Lightweight knockout artists, Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev, will lock horns with the winner inching closer to a future Lightweight title shot.

Don’t miss a single second of EPIC face-punching action!

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About the author
Tim Bissell
Tim Bissell

Tim Bissell is a writer, editor and deputy site manager for Bloody Elbow. He has covered combat sports since 2015. Tim covers news and events and has also written longform and investigative pieces. Among Tim's specialties are the intersections between crime and combat sports. Tim has also covered head trauma, concussions and CTE in great detail.

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