Finally a proper test of his abilities! Khamzat Chimaev defeated Gilbert Burns in a crazy fight

Khamzat Chimaev has finally arrived! After calling for a proper opponent before the fight, he had a crazy fight with Brazilian Burns at UFC 273 last night, beating him on points in a close fight.

In the UFC, a bored Chimaev calls for a proper opponent

Dana White’s most valuable gem Khamzat Chimaev, who hasn’t known the bitterness of defeat and has only landed one punch in four fights in the UFC, has another fight under his belt. And not just any fighter, finally a top 5 opponent, namely division number two and former title challenger Gilbert Burns, tested his skills.

The Chechen Wolf, who emigrated to Sweden as a child and trained alongside Matej Peñaz, was clamouring in the pre-fight press conference for an opponent he would finally not be bored with in the octagon. And White had prepared a really big bite for him, which was proven in the fight itself.

At UFC 273, Dana White threw him the number two contender in the division, Gilbert Burns

As Khimaev walked into the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, USA, the crowd was roaring, anticipating another knockout of the Chechen brawler. The fans in the arena were definitely on his side and boos could be heard as the Brazilian approached. Khamzat waited for his fighter alongside his partner Darren Till sitting on the cage.

The bout offered a spectacular spectacle in which Burns tested Chimaev’s skills for the first time

As expected, the first round started at a hellish pace with both fighters trading punches on the canvas. This was the first time that Khamzat got to know the real power of his opponent. So the fight was kept standing and although Khamzat’s punches seemed to be harder, Burns was able to hit his opponent nicely as well. At the end of the round Khimaev landed a good front straight to the chin and the Brazilian staggered to the floor, but he held the difficult situation and it was on to the second round.

The second round was considerably more frantic and Khamzat felt the blows that rocked him for the first time in his career. The Brazilian tried to take Khimaev to the ground, but the power of his opponent wouldn’t allow it. Although Chimaev pressured his opponent, he took a punch midway through the round that clearly rocked him and Burns felt his chance.

But the Chechen handled the situation with ease. Particularly at the end of the round, when Khamzat was putting pressure on the Brazilian on the canvas, Chimaev got a rear-naked choke and Khamzat went down, but there was too little time left.

In the break before the third round, Chimaev got a good lensing from his coaches. So he entered the third round more cautiously and scored decent points against his opponent. After a while, he shot the Brazilian well and he seemed to be on the verge of a takedown, but still couldn’t send him to the floor.

In the second half of the round, Burns rose from the dead and found the strength to war with Chimaev in the middle of the octagon and it was quite a war. But the fight went to the judges on points.

Chimaev won on points, but he gave his opponent the respect

The judges gave a unanimous decision and all three saw Khamzat Chimaev win by a score of 29 to 28. The latter also won 11 career fights, but for the first time in his career he reached the bottom and left the fight to the judges’ decision, which he confirmed in an interview while still in the octagon.

“Damn tough guy, I didn’t know he was so tough,” Chimaev paid tribute to his opponent in the octagon. “Thank you for this fight, Gilbert, I love you, brother, with all due respect,” praised the Brazilian. “These are the things I’ve been waiting for, I’m bloody tired now, I feel the pain, but this is what I love,” Chimaev added.

Prior to the fight, UFC President Dana White said that if Chimaev wins, he will submit the winner of the previous numbered UFC 272 event, Colby Covington. He is ranked right behind welterweight division champion and the best fighter on the planet Kamaru Usman. So we have a lot to look forward to.

Source: UFC