TJ Dillashaw shared shocking details about Khamzat Chimaev's weight cut before the Strickland fight. Sam Calavitta told Dillashaw that Chimaev was excluded from the main part of the weight cut and trusted another person who handled it incorrectly. Chimaev drank only a quarter of the necessary water, was vomiting green bile, and was on the verge of death. The situation was complicated by the fact that Chimaev has only half a thyroid gland, which slows his metabolism by half.
Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw has gone public with alarming details about the weight cut Khamzat Chimaev endured ahead of his middleweight bout against Sean Strickland, painting a picture of a process that came perilously close to ending in tragedy.
Dillashaw revealed that the information came to him from Sam Calavitta, a well-known figure in combat sports weight management. According to Dillashaw, Chimaev was removed from the main weight-cut protocol and placed in the hands of someone else who mismanaged the procedure. Chimaev reportedly consumed only a quarter of the water his body required during the rehydration phase, was vomiting green bile, and was described as being on the verge of death. Compounding the crisis, Chimaev has only half a functioning thyroid gland, a condition that effectively cuts his metabolic rate in half and makes extreme weight manipulation significantly more dangerous.
Chimaev, 30 years old — wait, verified at 32 — carries a record of 15 wins and just one loss and is currently ranked first in the middleweight division and tenth pound-for-pound. Standing six-foot-two with a reach of 75 inches, the Allstars Training Center product is one of the most physically imposing wrestlers in the sport, averaging 5.29 takedowns per 15 minutes alongside a striking accuracy of 60 percent.
Strickland, the reigning middleweight champion at 35 years old, holds a 31-7-0 record and brings relentless output to the octagon, landing 6.04 significant strikes per minute at six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach.
Why it matters
- The account raises serious questions about Chimaev's corner team and weight-cut oversight ahead of a championship-level fight
- Chimaev's thyroid condition introduces a medical variable that could affect future weight-class decisions or commission scrutiny
- If accurate, the severity of the cut potentially influenced his performance on fight night against the middleweight champion
