Khamzat Chimaev says McGregor, Jones & Khabib also fought unranked opponents coming up

The rising star welterweight contender Khamzat Chimaev addressed some criticism he commonly receives recently. ‘Borz’ said he doesn’t like it when people say he is not a great fighter just because he hasn’t fought renowned UFC fighters.

Khamzat Chimaev rose to fame during his short tenure in the UFC. None of his opponents landed significant strikes on him. He humiliated welterweight contender Li Jingliang and easily submitted him last October. The 27-year-old has gone 10-0 as a professional with all the fights ending with finishes.Some still believe Chimaev hasn’t proven his skill because he only fought unranked opponents.

Khamzat Chimaev thinks these critics are unfair. During a recent appearance on the latest episode of Smesh Bros, the Russian born fighter compared himself to other MMA superstars.

“Who did like, go in the cage, 10 fights, 10 finishes?. The guys like, ‘Oh, he didn’t fight this guy, he didn’t fight that guy,’ but the guys who’s the best guys, Jon Jones, his first four fights in UFC, he get the punch. I didn’t get the punch.” Chimaev said.

He continued, “We don’t say, his first fights, he didn’t get the best ones – the guys, you know, like, super good guys. Nobody. Conor [McGregor] didn’t get that, crazy good guys in his first fights. Nobody. Khabib [Nurmagomedov] didn’t get crazy good guys. I just need the time.”

Khamzat Chimaev shouldn’t worry about the critics anyway, the UFC has confirmed a fight with top 3 ranked Gilbert Burns. The two will serve as one of the fights on the main card of UFC 273 on April 9. If he manages to beat Burns, Chimaev will surely get a title shot.