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Khamzat Chimaev Pleads Fans to Take Care of Family and Protect Themselves Against COVID-19

Published 03/02/2021, 5:41 AM EST
ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – JULY 24: Khamzat Chimaev of Czechia poses on the scale during the UFC Fight Night weigh-in inside Flash Forum on UFC Fight Island on July 24, 2020 in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
By Aniket Awasthi
UFC superstar Khamzat Chimaev took to Instagram to announce a possible retirement in an unfortunate turn of events. He’d posted a story earlier where he showed a photo of blood in his sink.

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A screenshot of the story was posted on the Reddit page r/MMA. The Reddit user who posted the story translated it from Russian. The story read, “Take yourself and your family, this is the most important thing. The main thing is I do not know what this disease is, but it is not easily outlived.”

The translation of Khamzat Chimaev’s ‘blood in the sink’ Instagram story from MMA

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Chimaev then posted a photo on Instagram with a caption that expressed his appreciation for all his fans. In a shock to his fans, he went on to write that he thinks that he’s done. In addition to that, he also expressed his regrets about not winning the belt and thanked his team. All this sparked intense speculation around his retirement.
John Morgan from MMA Junkie spoke to Dana White and said that Chimaev would come back in June. White reportedly also said that he had talked to Chimaev about it.

Just spoke with UFC president Dana White after he talked with Khamzat Chimaev. According to White, Chimaev is not retiring and is still on track to return in June. Full story on MMA Junkie shortly.

— John Morgan (@MMAjunkieJohn) March 2, 2021

Khamzat Chimaev and his fighting career

‘Borz’ is unbeaten in his fighting career and holds a record of 9-0. He knocked out Gerald Meerschaert in 17 blistering seconds in his last fight. Chimaev shot to fame when he fought twice in ten days and dominated both of his opponents. Amazingly, both of his fights were at different weight classes.
He was slated to fight fellow welterweight Leon Edwards multiple times in the past year, but the fight got canceled due to some reason or the other. They were scheduled to fight again on March 13, 2021, but Chimaev had to pull out due to the after-effects of his affliction with COVID-19.

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 19: (R-L) Khamzat Chimaev of Chechnya punches Gerald Meerschaert in their middleweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on September 19, 2020, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
It felt like a miscommunication from his side, considering that Dana White refuted it, and while it is a grim sight to see him coughing up blood, we all hope that he comes out on top with full strength. He is only 26 years old and seems set for a fantastic fighting career.
Do you think the UFC needs to take stricter precautions because of COVID-19?

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Aniket Awasthi

141 articles

Aniket Awasthi is a UFC author at EssentiallySports. This STEM undergraduate combines an insatiable urge to write with his admiration for MMA and the UFC in general to enhance his journalism. He calls charismatic names like Chael Sonnen and 'The Count' Michael Bisping as his favorite fighters, but he is a great admirer of the rise of Israel Adesanya ever since he fought Rob Wilkinson at UFC 221.
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