The RAF wrestling league has officially announced the signing of Khamzat Chimaev. This marks Chimaev's entry into the wrestling organization alongside other UFC fighters who have joined RAF. The announcement was brief with no additional details provided about Chimaev's upcoming opponents or debut date. RAF has been attracting notable MMA fighters to compete in wrestling matches.
The RAF wrestling league has announced the addition of Khamzat Chimaev to its roster, making the undefeated-for-all-practical-purposes middleweight contender the latest UFC fighter to cross over into the organization's mat-based competition format.
Chimaev, known by his nickname Borz, carries a 15-1-0 professional MMA record and currently sits as the number one ranked middleweight in the UFC, with a place inside the pound-for-pound top ten at number ten. The 32-year-old, who represents the United Arab Emirates and trains out of Allstars Training Center in Sweden, stands six-foot-two with a 75-inch reach. His grappling credentials in MMA are well documented — he averages 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes and adds 1.8 submission attempts in the same window, numbers that make his transition to a pure wrestling format a natural fit. He also lands 4.04 significant strikes per minute at a 60 percent striking accuracy rate, underlining that his stand-up has always been built on a wrestling foundation.
Why it matters
- Chimaev's entry into RAF adds the UFC's top-ranked middleweight and a pound-for-pound name to a league already attracting notable MMA talent
- His elite takedown output suggests he will be a genuine competitive threat rather than a promotional signing alone
- No debut date or opponents have been announced, leaving the scope of his involvement unclear for now
