Rising UFC prospect, Khamzat Chimaev (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC), is getting his wish after bursting onto the scene this past July, at Fight Island where he fought and won twice in ten days, in two different weight classes.
Since bursting on the scene, Chimaev has been advocating to fight multiple times in one night or to fight on back-to-back UFC fight cards.
He now has two fights lined up. One against Gerald Meerschaert (31-13 MMA, 6-5 UFC) on Sept. 19, and another against Demian Maia (28-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC) in October, both set to take place in Vegas.
During a post-fight press conference, Tuesday, UFC president, Dana White, was asked about the thought process that goes into booking a fighter two fights before one of them has concluded.
“The thing is, the guy wants to keep fighting,” White told media. “He wants all these fights back-to-back. It’s no disrespect to his opponent, he’s either gonna win or lose. That has nothing to do with us, that’s up to them. But to do that, for him to really fight two fights in a row, you have to book him. I would never do that for somebody else, I’d be like ‘relax, let’s see if you get through this fight,’ but from what I’ve seen from him, I’m willing to do that with him.”
“It’s fascinating, you know, we never really had anybody that’s doing anything like he is right now. So I can see why you would say, ‘don’t you think this is disrespectful, booking a fight for him when he’s got a fight?’ But that’s how you have to do it. It’s interesting, I like it, and I’ve never had a guy like this, so it’s fun. I’ll play this game with him. After what I saw in his first two fights, he fought real guys man, he didn’t fight chumps. This isn’t a guy that’s blew through a couple of setup fights, he beat real people, and I’m gonna see how it plays out,” White concluded.
In his first two UFC fights, Chimaev has shown a lot of promise in the way he fights, and in the way he finishes his opponents rather quickly. With a win over Meerschaert, Chimaev may find himself on the fast-track to a title shot if he can get past submission artist, and former title challenger, Demian Maia, next.
Source: Dana White
