Dana White Leaves Khamzat Chimaev Confused as Negotiation for Next UFC Fight Addressed – “Fight for a Belt “

Khamzat Chimaev sent the entire MMA world feeling disappointed and worried as he was forced to pull out of his highly anticipated fight against Robert Whittaker at UFC Saudi Arabia. Without a doubt, withdrawing just a few days before a scheduled fight created some hard feelings within the fighting community. After all, Dana White was visibly upset in one of his interviews. Chimaev is all set to make a return, once again. But he doubts if White would let him have a shot at the title.

Most of the fight fans believe that ‘Borz’ getting a title fight in October is pretty unlikely since the entire month is already filled with exciting main events. But the UFC CEO has the Chechnyan fighter completely confused.

Khamzat Chimaev doubts Dana White will give him a title shot

On 16 July 2024, the Chechen Wolf made an appearance on RedCornerMMA, wherein he revealed his plans for the future. When asked about his next fight, Chimaev admitted that he was indeed waiting eagerly to enter the Octagon and bask in the spotlight. His dream might just come true at UFC 308, as he said, “Most likely in October, in Abu Dhabi.”

Chimaev’s opponent is yet to be decided. But like any other contender in the fighting world, ‘Borz’ wanted to fight for the championship title. After all, his MMA record shows his proficiency and eligibility. The welterweight said, “I’d like to fight for the title. I have 7 wins in 7 fights in the UFC. There’s not a single fighter who won 7 in a row and didn’t get a title shot. I think after this fight they have to give me a chance. I want to fight for a belt.”

However, the shocker came when ‘Borz’ was asked about White’s opinion on this. The Swedish mixed martial artist had to be persistent in his negotiations. Maybe, he had to win over the UFC head honcho after pulling out of multiple fights. He said, “Dana says different things. We’ll see. You have to negotiate with them constantly.”

No matter how desperate Chimaev might sound, many big guns in the fighting community seem to think that he blew his chances to fight for the championship belt. Let’s see what Chael Sonnen had to say about it.

UFC Veteran believes ‘Borz’ won’t get a title shot anytime soon

On ‘The Bad Guy Inc’ episode that was released on the 6th of July, 2024, Sonnen dug a bit deeper into the scenario that enveloped ‘Borz’. While Chimaev had often talked about his desire to wear the welterweight belt, ‘The American Gangster’ let the Swedish fighter taste the ugly truth. 

Sonnen said, “When you win a number one contenders match, comes with phone call to then offer you a world title match. Now, if you say no, and it doesn’t, please don’t go any further, doesn’t matter if it comes hook or crook, illness or injury, doesn’t make any difference, if you said no, that board and that slate is now wiped clean. And that’s a concept that every now and then will create hard feelings.”

Now, whether Chimaev gets a title shot or not is entirely up to him. All he needs to do is stick to the schedule and show up for his next fight. Needless to say, the Chechen Wolf has all the support he needs from his fans. Do you think White will let him fight the welterweight champ? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.