Shavkat Rakhmonov discusses a potential fight with Khamzat Chimaev: “There’s nothing extraordinary in what he does”

By Susan Cox - April 6, 2022

Shavkat Rakhmonov, 27, the Kazakhstani MMA who competes in the welterweight division of the UFC has discussed the potential of a fight with Khamzat Chimaev.

Shavkat Rakhmonov

Khamzat Chimaev, also 27, is sporting a current record of 10-0 MMA and is set up to fight Gilbert Burns (20-4 MMA) this coming Saturday, April 9th at UFC 273. Chimaev, a Russian born Swedish fighter, has had dominant performances in the cage and is looking to up his wins to 11 this weekend.

In speaking on the YouTube podcast ‘Smesh Bros‘, Shavkat Rakhmonov shared his thoughts about Khamzat Chimaev.

When asked about his name being mentioned along with another undefeated welterweight, Khamzat Chimaev, and the interest he might have in the two of them meeting up in the Octagon, Shavkat had this to say:

“I don’t know! It doesn’t really matter. Whoever they tell me to fight. If the rankings match right and the UFC makes that fight, I’m gonna do it without hesitation. But it’s not the right time to all him out, cuz he’s got an upcoming fight and might fight for a title potentially. The callouts are unnecessary now. Once I’ll get to him (in the rankings) we’ll fight!”

When asked if he’s surprised how easily Khamzat deals with the opposition, not unlike himself, Shavkat said this:

“I’m not surprised at all! There’s nothing extraordinary in what he does. Certainly he’s a good wrestler and he does a great job out there, he feels confident too, unlike his opponents. But it we fight it might be a different picture, a different fight.”

Of course, Shavkat Rakhmonov (15-0 MMA) with the nature of his fighting style, combined with his rise to prominence, is understandably being compared to Khamzat Chimaev.

Would you like to see a Shavkat Rakhmonov vs Khamzat Chimaev match-up? If it happens, who do you think would come out the victor?


Topics:

Khamzat Chimaev Shavkat Rakhmonov UFC