Glover Teixeira recently shared his thoughts on Khamzat Chimaev as a fighter. While the former UFC champion lauded Chimaev’s fighting prowess and dominance in the cage, he chastized the reigning middleweight king for beating up sparring partners who weren’t on his level.
Chimaev is easily among the biggest names in the UFC today and is known for his incredible grappling skills. He’s coming off a middleweight title win over Dricus du Plessis at UFC 319 in August. Despite many backing the South African fighter to win, Chimaev put on a grappling clinic and dominated ‘Stillknocks’ over five rounds to get his hand raised via unanimous decision.
In a recent interview with the UFC, the fighter-turned-coach got honest about Chimaev and said:
“He’s great, he’s great. I like the way he talks, and he backs it up. He comes back and shows. He’s an amazing fighter. One thing that I probably don’t like about Chimaev is that sometimes he spars with guys and beats the shit out of people who are not on his level. But he’s an amazing fighter, and he’s good on the microphone too.”
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Khamzat Chimaev calls for a super fight against Glover Teixeira’s star pupil Alex Pereira
Earlier this month, Khamzat Chimaev called for a super fight against Glover Teixeira’s close friend and pupil, Alex Pereira. Chimaev notably offered to face Pereira at heavyweight.
Soon after Pereira reclaimed the light heavyweight title with a first-round knockout win over Magomed Ankalaev in their rematch at UFC 320, the Brazilian voiced his eagerness to potentially move up to heavyweight and launch a bid to become the promotion’s first three-division champion.
Chimaev took note of Pereira’s wishes and offered to face the Brazilian in a heavyweight clash. In an X post, the Chechen-born grappling savant wrote:
“I’m ready to fight you in the heavyweight. You won’t find a super fight than our fight. No ‘Chama’, this is SMASH EVERYBODY!”
It’s worth noting that Pereira and Chimaev have no love for each other. The two fighting juggernauts have traded shots online in the past, with Chimaev confident that his high-pressure grappling style would neutralize Pereira’s raw striking power.
Edited by Nishant Zende.
