“Like Tyson the first time he went 12 rounds”- Coach compares Khamzat Chimaev’s career defying win to Mike Tyson when he faced adversity
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Mike Tyson and Khamzat Chimaev
Khamzat Chimaev got the better end of the unanimous decision in his fight against Gilbert Burns at UFC 273, but it didn’t exactly go down the way he expected. Khamzat was very confident coming into this fight, and he promised to just run through Burns to get the next title shot.
Burns was a big underdog in this fight, and he felt disrespected. He promised to test Khamzat’s will, and he sure proved out to be a real challenge for the young prospect. Khamzat started the fight really well, but Burns used his experience and turned things around in round number 2. He dropped Khamzat with an overhand right, but Khamzat showed an incredible display of heart and will, and he withered the storm to get his first big win.
Khamzat’s corner was fired up after round number 2, and his head coach begged him to follow the game plan. He admitted he got mad at Khamzat for getting into a fistfight with Burns, and he believes this experience would help him develop as a fighter, and take a more measured approach against top-ranked contenders.
“There’s a reason these guys are there”- Andreas Michael claims Khamzat Chimaev underestimated the ability of top-ranked contenders
Talking to Ariel Helwani from The MMA Hour, Andreas revealed what they trained for, and what went wrong in their fight at UFC 273, he said, “The plan was to just box him. Keep the jab going because that’s the way to handle that situation. He did absolutely everything we didn’t work on and he just wanted to show the people, ‘Listen, I’m here, I’m gonna walk through this guy.’”
He added, “But there’s a reason these guys are there. The No. 2, No. 1, champions, they’re there because they’re f****** tough. They’re some tough dudes, respect to them. You need that patience and that patience comes with experience. Remember, Khamzat has nearly never gone past the first round.”
He then took the example of the legends to further prove his point, he said, “It’s like Tyson the first time he went 12 rounds, it’s like, ‘Oh my God, he got exposed.’ What did they say about Khabib, for example, when he fought against Tibau? These are great, great fighters, but it’s how you handle adversity that shows that you’re a great fighter. And not every performance can be spectacular.”
Also read – “I don’t think sh*t of him” Jorge Masvidal is barely impressed by Khamzat Chimaev’s rise to the top in UFC
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