“Dana, send my money, brother. I’m waiting for that more than that s–t belt,” exclaimed Khamzat Chimaev after his UFC 319 title win. He’s been vocal about his goal of making as much money as possible, with little to no care for the championship strap. However, the belt appears to have a lot of significance for his people back home in Chechnya, who gave Chimaev a hero’s welcome as soon as he touched ground in Russia.

The Abu Dhabi fans may have booed Khamzat Chimaev despite his heavy showcase of wrestling, but they serenaded him with cheers after he won the championship. The triumph was even bigger for the people and the leader of Chechnya, who put on a whole show when they received him at the airport. Let’s take a look at what went down, as Chimaev’s UFC 319 win helped him continue the dream he has in his native land.

Ramzan Kadyrov and others receive Khamzat Chimaev at the airport

It is a moment of celebration for Chechnya as Khamzat Chimaev received the biggest sporting star status in his native region in Russia. The leader of the republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, was there with Chimaev’s father and several people surrounding him at the airport, as a happy middleweight champion posed with people for pictures. But there is more to the welcome ‘Borz’ received.

The leader of the Chechen Republic had always been high on Khamzat Chimaev, having spent a lot of time with the UFC champion. There are reports that claim that the UFC star has also received many gifts. In the same way, Chimaev has also set his plans in motion to give back to his hometown by building a gym where kids can train. Now, he might just be able to complete the total construction of the training facility, as reports claim the undefeated star made around $2.6 million from his win over Dricus du Plessis.

But coming back to the welcome in Chechnya, it was nothing short of grand. Besides having the leader of the region there to welcome Khamzat Chimaev, the middleweight champion was also greeted with a traditional Lezginka dance routine. Then, in the end, there are also videos going viral of Chimaev being escorted to his home in a car with an entourage following him.

Well, Khamzat Chimaev may not appear to value the title much, but deep down, he’d be rejoicing about the fact that his win mattered to his people. However, not everybody was happy with the way the 31-year-old performed. And guess what? Some people have raised concerns about the future of mixed martial arts.

Chimaev could ‘kill MMA’, claims Paulo Costa

Paulo Costa has been putting Khamzat Chimaev on blast now after revealing that he had slid into his partner’s DMs. But recently, he took aim at the new middleweight champion for his performance against Dricus du Plessis despite his wrestling dominance being on full show. ‘Borrachinha’ also claims that Chimaev’s fighting style could spell doom for the whole sport of MMA in the future due to the lack of “entertainment.”

“This is a show. This is entertainment. This kind of fight, and fighter, has a lot of potential to kill this business,” Paulo Costa stated during an interview with veteran journalist Ariel Helwani. “He surprised me after, because at the press conference after the fight, Dana [White] was [saying], ‘OK, he did amazing.’ No, he didn’t, man. He did horrible. This is horrible for the watchers.”

Well, a lot of famous and legendary MMA and UFC personalities have defended Khamzat Chimaev, claiming that people who did not like his performance aren’t hardcore fans of the sport. Nevertheless, Chimaev remains unfazed and happy that his win was a celebration for the people back home in Chechnya. Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.