Dana White explains Khamzat Chimaev’s lengthy hiatus from the UFC: “He’s got stuff going on in his personal life”

UFC president Dana White has given his thoughts on Khamzat Chimaev’s lengthy absence from the Octagon.

For the last few years, Khamzat Chimaev has been seen as one of the most interesting fighters in the UFC. In fact, you can extend that to all of combat sports. The Chechen star is undefeated in the promotion and in addition to that, he’s also undefeated in his entire pro career at 12-0.

However, he hasn’t been seen since September 2022 when he finished Kevin Holland in the first round. Since then, we’ve been watching and waiting to see when he’d make his next appearance in the cage.

To date, we haven’t seen him. What we have heard, though, are rumors that he can’t currently compete in the US and that his next bout may be in October.

During a recent interview, Dana White was asked why there could be such a long wait.

Dana White with an update on Khamzat Chimaev.

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“That’s on him, though. He’s got stuff going on in his personal life. That’s not because we’re not getting him a fight. Obviously you know how it goes here. I talk about this all the time, we have to get guys three fights a year. If we don’t get guys three fights a year, we have to pay them. The only way that wouldn’t happen is if they have personal stuff going on.”

White went on to confirm that as far as he knows, Chimaev is allowed to fight in the United States.

The Chimaev wait

Khamzat is such a fascinating prospect and could easily compete for a title at 170 pounds or 185 pounds. Still, if he wants to be in the conversation, he needs to be more active.

When do you believe we will see Khamzat Chimaev back in the cage? Let us know your thoughts in the comments, BJPENN Nation!