Khamzat Chimiev was disappointed that he did not fight Nate Diaz in UFC 279. Maybe it was the right decision.
“If I fought him, I would kill him,” Chimaev said at the press conference following Saturday’s pay-per-view event. “I would be in a jail, so maybe I have to be happy.”
Chimaev definitely was happy after tearing through Kevin Holland in the co-main event. T-Mobile’s audience was less enthusiastic, booing Chimaev loudly for his weight loss and inability to remorse. This forced UFC 279′ to shuffle its headliners.
Diaz made the best out of the situation, meanwhile, submitting last-second replacement Tony Ferguson in the co-main event. The cheers he got were in stark contrast to the reaction Chimaev got in victory.
But Chimaev wasn’t defiant following his victory, neither was he defiant regarding his heel turn during fight week.
” You care about this s ***? He said, “I don’t care.” He said, “I care about family, my career and my money. So what’s the point? One day, they’re with me, one day they’re not with me. Because I am a real man, I prefer real men. .”
The co-headliner took the crowd’s attention and they barely had time to respond. It took Chimaev less than three minutes to turn Holland from a trash-talking rival to a submitted victim. It was his fourth UFC win where he didn’t take a single punch from his opponent. It also nearly didn’t happen. He was concerned when the UFC doctor who had been appointed to his care stopped him from losing weight, which meant he wouldn’t be able to compete with Diaz at welterweight. This would have jeopardized his fight.
Instead, Holland was booked opposite Diaz by the UFC, who gave Ferguson Ferguson. Most MMA observers believed it an improvement on the card’s previous iteration.
” I was just thinking, and now I must fly back,” Chimaev stated. “I want to fight. “I got to Vegas so I want fight Diaz. I don’t care about my money. Give all my money to that guy, just let him fight with me. He might be referring to “I’m the Gangster” or “All that’s ***,’ it doesn’t matter how much you weigh.”
” They wanted to jump on my backstage, one-on-one. There were 10 men. I didn’t give up. They will come up, so I’m ready to fight them. That, weights and this ***.”
are irrelevant to me.
It was a few water bottles that were thrown between Chimaev’s camp and Diaz backstage at UFC 279 conference. That was all they had to fight. From what Chimaev saw backstage on fight night, he was not impressed by Diaz’s work in the octagon.
” Did you watch that fight? What do you think they did? “The guys are older,” I am a young man. I am the murderer. I have no idea what people are talking. This guy is from USA, this is his home. He is a great guy. Okay, let’s fight the ****** in our country. You will see. There will not be a man who loves Diaz. Nobody going to say Diaz’s name there. They will murder them if they do. ?”
Chimaev may never understand why Diaz remains one of the sport’s biggest heroes. It’s what happens in the cage that matters most to him, from where he is sitting. That’s not his concern, however. He and his coaches are aiming for titles in three divisions. Diaz escaped a war with him. The battles are now against new targets.
