UFC, Khamzat Chimaev
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On Saturday, the MMA world saw unbeaten boogeyman Khamzat Chimaev achieve what many thought was an inevitability – become UFC champion at 185 pounds. Chimaev dominated, and defeated Dricus Du Plessis by unanimous decision 50-44 across the board in the main event of UFC 319 in Chicago.
The coach of Makhachev and Khabib is not the only prominent name defending Chimaev’s approach in the aftermath of UFC 319.
Robert Whittaker defends Khamzat Chimaev’s dominant performance over Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 319 against fans who called it boring.
Chimaev (15-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) dominated and outgrappled Dricus Du Plessis (23-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC) to claim the middleweight title in Saturday's UFC 319 headliner at United Center in Chicago. Usman was one of the few fighters to pick Chimaev to win.
Khamzat Chimaev was completely dominant in his victory over Dricus du Plessis to become middleweight champion at UFC 319 but he also faced criticism for not taking more risks and instead mostly just relying on his wrestling for takedowns and control time to win the fight.
Khamzat Chimaev had a history making performance against Dricus du Plessis but there was a certain aspect of the fight that seemed to be lacking a bit
Whittaker, who was quickly submitted by Chimaev at UFC 308, went on to lose his second-straight fight to Reinier de Ridder (21-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) last month in the UFC on ABC 9 headliner. De Ridder was able to survive a Round 3 knockdown to outlast Whittaker.
The Dutchman has won three fights in a row since signing with the UFC. His most recent triumph came in the main event of a UFC Fight Night in Abu Dhabi this past June, where De Ridder defeated Robert Whittaker to add a former champion to his résumé.