Allegedly, the Borz, Khamzat Chimaev receives offers for fighting all the time. And during this rush of offers, he receives and turns down the light-heavyweight contender Luke Rockhold’s offer, twice.
Luke Rockhold is now booked to fight Paulo Costa at the UFC 277, however, before this, he had open options to choose from. Did Khamzat Chimaev do the right thing by turning him down?
Khamzat Chimaev Is Scared Of Luke Rockhold – Turns Down Fight Offer Twice
According to Luke Rockhold himself, he did. First of all, Khamzat Chimaev is a welterweight, weighing around 170lbs and Like on the other hand tops this with more than 15lbs. For the two to meet, Khamzat needs to up his game to 185lbs. These 15lbs might take a very significant toll on the Chechnyan.
It will make him more powerful indeed, but he will be much slower on the other side. Finally, Khamzat feels confident in the division he is fighting in, and we will probably not see him switch divisions any time soon.
“Khamzat didn’t take the fight, by the way, we were set to fight. He wanted to stay at 170. I think that was a wise move for him at this point.” – Luke says.
It indeed shows to be a very wise decision. Since then, Khamzat has had a win over Jingliang Li, and a win against Gilbert Burns. This path eventually puts him at the top of the list of welterweight fighters in the promotion and positions him for a possible title shot.
Luke Rockhold is not complaining for where he is at the moment as well. He is more than excited to fight Paulo Costa at the UFC 277 and considers him a ‘worthy’ opponent.
“It gets me up in the morning. It’s always, I mean, I’m not here to fight bums. I’m here to fight people that have proven their worth. And that excites me. I don’t get excited to get up and fight fucking idiots.” – Luke concludes and continues – “Honestly, the Sean Strickland thing wasn’t that motivating.
Paulo, he’s tested himself against the best and he’s just a fucking piece of shit and a meathead. So there are certain parts about him that just get me excited to go correct the situation and get back on top. So, that’s what motivates me, I want people that motivate me.” – he ends the statement. Most probably he is right. This turn of events benefits both Luke and Khamzat the most.
Luke Rockhold’s previous fight is back in 2019. It is a loss to Jan Blachowicz where he got a KO finish. After three years, he is back in the game and is not here to play. He is readier than ever, stronger than ever, and in his best condition so far. He is confident that he can finish Paulo Costa fast.
Will he be able to do it, we will see at the UFC 277, in less than three months’ time.
