When Du Plessis was mentioned, Chimaev gave a hilarious two-word response that indicates just how nonchalant he was for much of UFC 319 fight week. “Normal fight,” Chimaev said. Chimaev’s response is perhaps unsurprising given where his motivation lies.

Khamzat Chimaev's Interaction With Daniel Cormier Has Fans Excited For UFC 319 originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Khamzat Chimaev has never been a stranger to drama on the scales. After a few weight-cutting issues earlier in his UFC run, he made the move from welterweight to middleweight, a shift that was supposed to make fight week a little less stressful.

‘Borz’ has become renowned for fast starts and immediate takedown attempts, a move that set up Chimaev’s rapid brabo choke against Kevin Holland in 2022 and a brutal face crank on Robert Whittaker just last year. While his foes know what is coming, Chimaev remains just as hard to defend against.

Khamzat Chimaev continued to brush off Paulo Costa. Costa (15-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) is eager to fight with Chimaev after accusing him of sending his wife "nasty" messages on Instagram. Chimaev denied ever doing that, but Costa still insists on settling his grudge with him.

Khamzat Chimaev is set to make his long awaited return to the UFC Octagon in the U.S. and has credited President Donald Trump after having his visa granted.

After watching Chimaev knock out Gerald Meerschaert in just 17 seconds the year before, the UFC CEO gushed about him in a post-fight interview. He called him “special” and admitted that he’d never seen anyone like him in the octagon before.

Ahead of his first appearance as a UFC pay-per-view main eventer this Saturday, Khamzat Chimaev offered up a comment that