The undefeated Arabia fighter Khamzat Chimaev was set to headline the UFC’s first event in Saudi Arabia but his plans were canceled last week.
Chimaev has been a formidable sensation since his debut in MMA in 2020. The fighter had three dominant finishes over the course of two months in the cage and he was considered a potential future champion.
The Arabian was on a winning roll and many suspected he had the prospect of becoming a two-division champion and would defend at welterweight and middleweight. Chimaev’s career soon took a turn after three bouts against Leon Edward were canceled due to the Arabian contracting COVID-19.
Although there were contemplations about the fighter going into retirement due to the illness lingering in his system, Chimaev discounted such rumors. The athlete had an impressive comeback with a first-round finish against Li Jingliang in 2021. He went on to defeat Gilbert Burns with a unanimous decision win. Chimaev has since then defeated every opponent he has come against but fans are still unsure about his status. Chimaev was scheduled to clash with former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker but he had to withdraw due to illness.
The news came as a shock to fans but members of Chimaev camp have confirmed that the fighter was hospitalized several times during camp. Chimaev’s manager Majdi Shammas revealed read a statement following the news.
“The persistent illness that Khamzat has been battling for major parts of training camp could be cured in time. He has been in and out of hospitals several times”
UFC CEO Dana White also attested to knowing about Chimaev’s sickness. However, the promotion has no clue about what precisely was wrong with him.
“The problem is we really don’t know[what’s wrong],” White told The Jim Rome Show. “Every time this guy gets close to a fighting, he gets really sick. I don’t know how long he’s going to be out. I don’t know what to say. It’s not like he’s over here in this country and we’ve had doctors here look at him or anything like that. He’s sort of out of touch so it’s tough to deal with.”
“I saw a video footage of him on the ground violently ill. He was hospitalized again. He hadn’t trained for three or four days or five days. I don’t know exactly what the number was but we could not put into a fight next weekend…”
“I saw this kid on Fight Island, he wanted to fight the next weekend. And, I let him fight the next weekend. He looked incredible. He’s been in this tear and lately, it’s been hard to get him into the octagon. Every time he gets close to fighting, he gets really sick. I don’t know [how long he’s going to be out]. I don’t know what to say. It’s not like he’s over here in this country and we’ve had doctors here look at him or anything like that. He’s sort of out of touch so it’s tough to deal with.”
In response to this withdrawal, Chimaev uploaded a post on his Instagram page on Monday with the caption “We always plan something but Allah has his own plans for us! Alhamdulillah 🤲”
Chimaev’s career swing has become concerning to fans. Although the fighter’s last major fight was his win against Kamaru Usman at UFC 294, the bout with Whittaker was a chance to bring him back into the limelight. There has been no announcement on rescheduling the fight but fans are hopeful.
