Khamzat Chimaev 's controversial friendship with controversial leader Ramzan Kadyrov remains a talking point ahead of his fight at UFC 279 tonight.
No.3 ranked welterweight and rising star Chimaev, 28, was due to serve as the opponent for Nate Diaz's final UFC fight in Las Vegas. But Chimaev will now take on Kevin Holland after he failed to make weight on Friday, with Diaz taking on Tony Ferguson in the main event.
But at a time where sports and politics often come hand in hand, it's unsurprising that Chimaev has been criticised for his relationship with Kadyrov. Ruling Chechenya for the last 15 years, Kadyrov has been labelled a despot for his rules which restrict the lives of women in the republic.
The leader, whose influence on MMA is unquestionable, has also received backlash from LGBT groups around the world for leading anti-gay purges in Chechnya. Kadyrov founded the Akhmat MMA fight club, a gym at which current UFC fighters such as Maxim Grishin, Albert Duraev and Magomed Ankalaev train.
Last year, a Siberian journalist was severely beaten by a group of unknown men after investigating the MMA gym. It's the latest of controversies linked to Akhmat MMA, with a Chechen blogger surviving an attempt on his life after looking into the fight gym last February
A number of former UFC champions such as Chris Weidman and were hosted by Kadyrov at an Akhmat MMA event in 2015. Chimaev visited the gym after his win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 273 in April, sparring with Kadyrov’s teenage sons during a training session. Last January, Chimaev was gifted a Mercedes Benz by Kadyrov but the UFC star crashed it just three months later.
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Chimaev's fighting career was almost over in 2020 after he broke promotional records for the fastest consecutive wins and quickest three-fight win streak in modern history. 'Borz' went through a long battle with Covid-19 he announced he was "done" with fighting, but Kadyrov seemingly pressured him to consider his decision and the following month Chimaev ended his retirement.
“Khamzat said that his recovery from the illness has been slow, and, in an attempt to be honest and frank with the fans, he decided not to give them hope. I told him that all Chechens were upset by this news. I reminded Chimaev that the youth, whom he inspires, are pinning their hopes and expectations on his success and if fans need to wait for his return, then we will all look forward to his return to the octagon with trepidation and patience," Kadyrov said.
The leader even sent a private plane to pick Chimaev up from Sweden and take him to Chechenya amid his health concerns. In May, Chimaev sparred with Kadyrov and seemingly allowed him to be ragdolled by the leader. Whilst voicing support for his "motherland", Chimaev also expressed his frustration for sport being mixed with politics in light of his relationship with Kadyrov.
