“I want him to stay at 170” – Gilbert Burns challenges Khamzat Chimaev to face the division at welterweight instead of moving up
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Gibert Burns and Khamzat Chimaev (L-R) shared the octagon at UFC 273
Khamzat Chimaev is considered by many to be the most dominant fighter in the welterweight division, after Kamaru Usman.
Before 2022, Chimaev had absorbed just 4 strikes in the UFC – to make it clear how impressive that is, one must remember that he had fought 4 fighters, including Li Jingliang.
Enter Gilbert Burns. Chimaev and Burns fought at UFC 273, on the undercard of the Alexander Volkanovski and Korean Zombie headliner. Chimaev was going into the fight with bullish confidence, having absorbed just a couple of clean strikes, but, by the end of the contest, he had been outstruck by Burns 119-108.
Although he defeated Gilbert Burns, it was by no measure, an easy fight. And just how good Burns is, was showcased by Khamzat’s first-round finish of Kevin Holland a month back.
Khamzat Chimaev, of late, has become one of the heels of promotion. Some of it is down to his own doing, however. Coming in seven and a half pounds overweight on the scale against Nate Diaz, he robbed the fans of an epic showdown. However, what really angered fans was his nonchalance about the issue. In the aftermath of his win over Kevin Holland, the Swede expressed his desire to move up in weight and fight at a weight class that suits him better.
Gilbert Burns, however, has disapproved of this proposed move. He spoke about this, to MMAJunkie, saying, “I know a lot of guys were celebrating that he’s going up. No, I want him to stay at 170.”
Gilbert Burns advises Khamzat Chimaev to stay disciplined
While it is unknown as to why exactly Chimaev missed weight against Nate Diaz by such a margin, what is known is the fact that the UFC doctor asked him to stop the weight cut quite prematurely. Quite possibly, the fighter’s health could have been compromised.
Against this, his former opponent has given him some warning moving forward. He said, “It doesn’t matter how you start, it matters how you finish. It don’t matter if that guy starts so big, so impressive. It matters how you finish, you know? … I don’t know, the fans might like all the drama; the not making weight, canceling your press conference, a lot of things. It’s hard to feel bad for this guy that’s making a lot of mistakes on just the beginning of his career.”
Continuing, he said, “I think he can stay (at 170 pounds)… just got to be disciplined, (but) it’s not just discipline. If you sign a contract and you put your name on it, you sign it, you gotta own it. You gotta be a man.”
Despite the nature of their intense battle merely six months back, Khamzat Chimaev can take some well-wished advice from Burns, who is more experienced than him.
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Udayan Mukherjee
(382 Articles Published)