UFC star Khamzat Chimaev reveals health problems with his one-year-old son

Khamzat Chimaev has highlighted the “difficulty” of watching his one-year-old son battle health issues – a physical struggle the fighter knows all too well.

Chimaev is 13-0 in MMA with 11 finishes, and he stormed to 3-0 in the UFC in just two months in 2020. That run had fans predicting that the Russian-born Swede would fight for a title at welterweight or middleweight – his preferred divisions – but Chimaev’s career has been a stopover since then.

The 30-year-old contracted Covid in December 2020 and has continued to battle the lingering effects of the disease, only four times in the last four years. And now Chimaev is tasked with keeping both his young son and himself healthy.

The “Wolf” spoke to ESPN ahead of UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi, where Chimaev lives and will face Robert Whittaker on Saturday.

“I’m going back to Sweden [after the fight]said Chimaev. “My son has [had] one operation, has a second. Everything is fine, thank God. One more thing after the fight, and after that my son will be healthy.

“He has a kidney, some problem,” Chimaev continued, although it was unclear whether he meant that his child had lost a kidney or was suffering from problems with one of two kidneys.

“I don’t know what it’s called in English, but they say a lot of kids usually have it. Thank God he is healthy, he talks, runs, he is happy.

“Of course, surgeries, surgeries, it’s hard when someone in the family has one – my brother, my sister, anyone else. It’s hard to think about, but when it comes to your child, it’s different. You think about it.

“For me, my family is most important, not the fight game. So, of course, I think about it more.” Chimaev added that raising his “one and a half year old” son was “difficult but fun.”

The No. 13 ranked middleweight also spoke about his own health issues, the details of which have remained secret for some time.

“I can’t remember what the doctor said. He said you can’t train anymore. I don’t remember being infected, but because my immunity has weakened, you’re all sick [get] bad. Whatever happens around you, you [get] It.

“He said, ‘Just rest, go home, don’t do anything for a month, recover, just take some supplements.’ I listened to him and it worked.” A voice can be heard offscreen, suggesting that the problem is related to “Gastro”.

Chimaev was also asked about his recent admission that he had suffered from “depression”, saying: “It’s hard to move from one country to another, move your things, change your bank account, lots of different things and still. “You have to train.

“Change the team, work with different coaches, there’s a lot of shit going on. I had to move to another country with my family, find new doctors, a lot of things, a lot of papers. And you still have to be in the gym twice a day.

“It was too much, but it’s all done. Thank God everything is okay.”

Chimaev last fought in October 2023, defeating Kamaru Usman on points. The Nigerian-American, a former welterweight world champion, was making his middleweight debut and stepped in at short notice. Chimaev was originally scheduled to face Paulo Costa, who had to withdraw due to injury.

In Chimaev’s previous fight, he was the one responsible for a late-announced change to the card; The 30-year-old missed weight for a welterweight bout with Nate Diaz and then fought Kevin Holland in a 180-pound catchweight contest. Chimaev won by submission in the first round.

Chimaev also caused concern among fans on Friday (October 25) when he expressed his opinion 15 minutes before the cut-off time. However, weighing in at 186 pounds, he was successful.