‘He refused anyway,’ Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov offered Nate Diaz whopping $2 million to fight overweight Khamzat Chimaev
Even Chechnya's leader couldn't convince Nate Diaz to fight Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279.
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Nate Diaz rejected Ramzan Kadyrov's offer to fight Chimaev (Image Courtesy - Bloody Elbow/Twitter)
Khamzat Chimaev failed to make weight ahead of his blockbuster matchup against Nate Diaz at UFC 279. However, that didn’t stop Team Chimaev from convincing the Stockton star to take the main event fight. So much so that even Chechnya’s leader, Ramzan Kadyrov offered to pay Diaz a handsome amount to keep the show alive.
At UFC 279, rising superstar Chimaev’s weight cut was an absolute disaster. Diaz who was never a favorite in that matchup, had the stars align for his final UFC fight. After Chimaev’s miss at the weigh-ins, Diaz forced the promotion to switch opponents last moment and fought Tony Ferguson instead.
In a recent interview, Khamzat revealed that Diaz was offered double the money to fight an overweight Chimaev. “I offered everything to Diaz, all my money to make it happen. Then Ramzan Akhmatovich called me and told me that he was ready to pay Diaz even $2,000,000 for the fight,” said Chimaev.
The undefeated Chechen fighter claims Nate Diaz still did not agree to fight him in the main event. Ramzan Kadyrov has strong relations with the UFC prospect. Chimaev has continued to boast about his friendship with the Chechen leader despite the flak he gets from fans.
According to Khamzat Chimaev Kadyrov offered 2 million for the Nate Diaz fight ? #MMA #UFC pic.twitter.com/XJeUhETBl5
— ????????? ? (@Denkobar) February 10, 2023
Team Nate Diaz responds to Khamzat Chimaev’s ‘fairytale’ offer
Ariel Helwani, an MMA journalist posted the quotes from Nate Diaz’s representative Zach Rosenfield regarding Chimaev’s recent claims. “It is fun fiction for Khamzat. Just lacks a shred of truth, including that he was supposed to make. At what point in Khamzat’s fairy tail did he ask Nate?” the representative said.
The rep reaffirmed that “The only millions that were negotiated on that Friday were the millions more that we got for fighting Tony after Khamzat was not professional enough.” Nate Diaz went on to fight Tony Ferguson while Khamzat ended up fighting middleweighter Kevin Holland.
Quote from Nathan Diaz’s rep Zach Rosenfield on Khamzat Chimaev’s recent comments about their failed fight last year. pic.twitter.com/zBsku75ubg
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) February 10, 2023
Chimaev missed weight by 7-8lbs and was unapologetic about the mishap. UFC 279 saw the fighter go from hero to heel. Chimaev is now looking to return to the middleweight division after struggling to make 170lbs.
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Prateek Athanur
(2944 Articles Published)