Khamzat Chimaev’s failure to meet the UFC’s 170-pound welterweight limit caused some serious headaches for the UFC brass. It forced a reshuffle of the entire UFC 279 main card, causing chaos for this month’s pay-per-view. Dana White addressed the issue at the post-fight press conference, admitting that Khamzat’s inability to cut down to 170 pounds presents a problem moving forward.
“Yeah, it’s a problem, it’s a problem that he missed weight. We have to look at it and figure it out, but what makes sense is for him to fight at [185]. So we’ll see.”
Dana White on Khamzat’s “Problem” Weight Miss
White praised Chimaev for his lightning-fast victory over rescheduled opponent Kevin Holland. The fight, which took place at catchweight, saw Chimaev smother Holland with his wrestling before securing a submission in the first round, calling Chimaev a “freak of nature”. White conceded that he had yet to discuss the weight issue with Chimaev.
“No, [I haven’t talked to him]. I mean, what should I talk to him about? You should be sorry? Get smaller? It is what it is. It happened and yeah, we’ll go back this week, come up with a plan, and like I just told Kevin [reporter], have him fight at [185].”
The cancelled press conference, massive weight miss, and reshuffled main card made this fight week one of the craziest in recent memory. Dana White brushed it off, citing his decades of experience in the fight game.
“Yeah, it was crazy, but if you think about it, 22 years or however f*cking long I’ve been doing it, this is what we do. We had that one year when the main event fell off. We had a year when every main event fell off that year, and we had to do some switching around. It’s a nightmare, but we get it done.”
Khamzat Chimaev missed the welterweight limit by almost eight pounds after a doctor called a stop to his weight cut. Chimaev has fought in both the UFC’s welterweight and middleweight divisions. If he can’t safely cut down to 170 pounds, it’s arguable that he has no business fighting at welterweight. A forced move up to 185 would derail his title ambitions, as Chimaev has been clamoring for a shot at the welterweight belt for much of his UFC tenure.
Do you think Khamzat Chimaev should have another shot at welterweight, or is he better off sticking to 185 pounds from now on? Let us know in the comments.
