Khamzat Chimaev is trying to get a fight with Colby Covington, but ‘Borz’ says ‘Chaos’ is ‘running’ from him.
After his win against Gilbert Burns in their ‘Fight of the Year’ candidate at UFC 273 this past April, Chimaev set his sights on Covington, who he vowed to ‘smash’ if they ever fought. UFC president Dana White was interested in Chimaev vs. Covington, saying he ‘would love’ to schedule it in the near future. That has yet to happen, though.
According to Chimaev, the UFC tried — and failed — to schedule him against Covington. And after several attempts to do so, the undefeated fighter grew tired of waiting for him, so Chimaev decided to focus on the winner of the trilogy between Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman.
“I have no clue either,” said Chimaev in a recent interview with Red Corner MMA. “At first, they said it was Colby Covington. We’ve been waiting for a half a year. [It] looks like he doesn’t want it. They all call me out, but as soon as the UFC tries to make the fight, they start running.
“I think it’s going to be the winner of Usman vs. Edwards III,” continued Chimaev. “Whoever takes it will face me.”
Though he expects to fight the winner of Edwards vs. Usman III, Chimaev wants to return sooner than later. To do that, the Allstar Training Center product says he would a move from welterweight to middleweight, a division he has fought in twice since joining the UFC two years ago.
As for a potential opponent, Chimaev is aiming for a former champion.
“I think I will fight Robert Whittaker,” said Chimaev. “He’s got no opponent. Paulo Costa ran away after talking that much about me and Robert, so I will fight Whittaker. I want this fight. Although I like him as a human being. He is a solid guy, doesn’t talk trash, doesn’t cross any lines. We are going to have fun at the press conference and fight each other.”
Chimaev has not fought since submitting Kevin Holland by first-round D’arce choke at UFC 279 this past September.
About the author: Kristen King is a writer for Bloody Elbow. She has covered combat sports since 2016. (full bio)
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