Chechen welterweight Khamzat Chimaev opens as a heavy betting favorite over number 2 ranked former title contender Gilbert Burns
It would be remiss to say that a number 2 ranked fighter wouldn’t be the clear favorite in a fight against 11th ranked fighter. But defying the usual odds is what Chechen born Swedish fighter Khamzat Chimaev has been doing ever since he made his UFC debut.
Chimaev has taken the MMA world by storm, ever since he made his debut in 2020. The Russian born- Swedish mixed martial artist is pitted to be the only fighter in the welterweight division that really stands a chance to beat the welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman. The promotion has been working relentlessly to get a top-ranked competition for him, and it has finally come to effectuation with a fight against no.2 ranked, Gilbert Burns at UFC 273.
Usually when a top prospect appears on the UFC radar, fans start questioning the legitimacy of the hype, but that hasn’t been the case with Chimaev. His dominance is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before, and everyone including MMA pundits and oddsmakers have hopped on to the hype train.
This is evident from the latest odds posted by UFC broadcast team commentator Jon Anik. He posted,
Khamzat Chimaev (-490) v. Gilbert Burns (+360). #UFC273 #PPV
“The guy’s f**king crazy” – Sean Strickland lays out his prediction for Khamzat Chimaev vs Gilbert Burns at UFC 273
UFC middleweight fighter Sean Strickland recently had trained with Khamzat Chimaev and Darren Till, ahead of the Chechen’s fight at UFC 273 against Gilbert Burns. Having had a first-hand experience of the famous pressure of the ‘Borz’, Strickland has laid out a bold prediction.
MMA world is high on Khamzat Chimaev’s dominant run so far, and has already tipped him to become the next double-weight champion. The North Carolina native fighter is no different, and has called Khamzat “f**king crazy”.
In conversation with The Schmo detailing his future plans, Strickland made a bold prediction and said that Gilbert Burns might not be able to produce answers to any of Chimaev’s onslaughts. He said,
“I mean, [Khamzat Chimaev’s] just a massive welterweight dude and the guy’s, like, the guy’s crazy. Like he believes, like he believes in himself so much where I just, I don’t think, I don’t think [Gilbert Burns] has the tools. I mean, non-biased, yeah. I don’t, I think he should run through him.”
Hardly anyone with any knowledge about MMA has spoken contrastingly about Chimaev, and majority UFC fighters have forecasted him to dominate Burns.
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