Inactive middleweight needs a finish at UFC 308

Khamzat Chimaev has a statement to make this weekend.

Undefeated UFC middleweight Khamzat Chimaev returns to the octagon on Saturday in the co-main event of UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway. Undoubtedly the biggest fight of his career, Chimaev (13-0) will face former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker.

After a disappointing few years, Chimaev needs to get an emphatic victory over Whittaker to restore his reputation as the division’s bogeyman.

Chimaev was once the scariest fighter in the division

A native of Chechnya, Russia, Chimaev made his UFC debut in 2020 and immediately put the rest of the promotion on the map. After submitting John Phillips in his first fight on Fight Island, “Borz” urged UFC president Dana White to let him fight as early as next week.

White obeyed and Chimaev returned to the octagon after just ten days – this time in a different weight class. There he beat Rhys McKee emphatically in the first round.

The Russian’s unmatched performance caught the attention of the UFC president, with White describing it as an “absolute freak of nature.”

After just two months, Chimaev was back in the octagon to face Gerald Meerschaert. He needed just one punch to knock out his opponent in 17 seconds, making it the third-fastest knockout in middleweight history.

In his first three fights, Chimaev was untouchable, dominant and fearsome. He posed an immediate threat to the division and it seemed inevitable that he would go after the belt.

Inactivity has derailed Chimaev’s hype train

In the years that followed, Chimaev maintained his undefeated record but lost the momentum of his meteoric rise. While he once fought three times in two months, the Russian has only fought four times since 2021.

The fighter was scheduled to face future welterweight champion Leon Edwards in December 2020, but was forced to withdraw due to complications with COVID-19. Persistent symptoms and possible pulmonary complications meant that Chimaev had to be sidelined for 13 months. During the layoff, he even thought about retiring.

Borz briefly returned to regular play with three impressive victories from October 2021 to September 2022, but then took another longer break from promotion. The UFC president cited “personal” problems as the reason for Chimaev’s absence during this period.

Chimaev returned again after a year away, defeating former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman by majority decision in October 2023. He was originally scheduled to face Whittaker this summer, but serious illness once again kept him away from the octagon.

Although he has won all of his fights, Chimaev’s inactivity has prevented him from making a serious attack on the belt. Four years after winning three fights in 66 days, the 30-year-old sits at No. 13 in the middleweight rankings.

Chimaev has to make an explanation

Chimaev has a chance to bounce back this weekend against No. 3 middleweight contender Whittaker. However, he must achieve a decisive victory if he wants the division to fear him again.

While he may have beaten Usman last year, it was an incredibly close fight that could have gone either way. In fact, it was almost enough when one of the three judges rated the competition a draw. Especially considering Usman stepped in at short notice, Chimaev’s narrow win turned out to be the worst thing ever – he was human.

If Chimaev wants to re-establish himself as the middleweight monster he once was, he will have to prove he can still dominate top competition. One decision won’t change it. Chimaev needs to finish Whittaker or risk sinking into the realm of what-if scenarios.