Khamzat Chimaev has responded to recent comments from Conor McGregor, expressing willingness to fight him in boxing or MMA. Chimaev stated he has already spoken to people at Zuffa Boxing about a potential matchup. He emphasized that while people view him primarily as a wrestler, he has strong boxing skills that he simply doesn't need to rely on in MMA fights. Chimaev challenged the perception that he can only grapple, saying he would showcase his boxing ability if he competed in a pure boxing match. The post does not indicate whether any formal negotiations are taking place.
Khamzat Chimaev has fired back at Conor McGregor, making clear he is open to meeting the Irish star under either MMA or boxing rules and revealing he has already been in contact with people at Zuffa Boxing about a potential matchup.
Chimaev, known as "Borz," enters the conversation as one of the most dominant forces in the UFC's middleweight division. The 32-year-old, who represents the United Arab Emirates and trains out of Allstars Training Center in Stockholm, holds a 15-1 record and sits at number one in the middleweight rankings, with a top-ten place on the pound-for-pound list. His reputation is built largely on suffocating grappling — he averages 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes — but Chimaev pushed back hard on the idea that wrestling is his only weapon. He argued that his boxing is genuinely sharp and that he simply has no reason to rely on it when MMA allows him to impose his grappling game. A 60 percent striking accuracy rate and 4.04 significant strikes landed per minute suggest his hands are far from decorative.
McGregor, 37, is the former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion who built his legend on his striking. The southpaw from Dublin carries a 22-6 MMA record and averages 5.32 significant strikes per minute, though his MMA takedown activity has always been minimal at 0.67 per 15 minutes. His physical dimensions — five-foot-nine with a 74-inch reach — put him several inches shorter than Chimaev, who stands six-foot-two with a 75-inch reach.
Why it matters
- Chimaev is the top-ranked middleweight contender, so any extended focus on a boxing crossover carries divisional implications
- A boxing-specific setting would remove the grappling dimension that has made Chimaev nearly unstoppable in MMA
- No formal negotiations have been confirmed, and it remains unclear whether McGregor's camp has responded to Chimaev's outreach with Zuffa Boxing
