Several mixed martial arts enthusiasts have taken notice of a recent post that rising star Khamzat Chimaev of the UFC made to Instagram.
A few hours after putting on an excellent performance at UFC 294, ‘Borz’ shared a picture to his Instagram account that featured both himself and the Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov.
Chimaev appears to have a cordial relationship with Kadyrov, as the two have been seen together on numerous occasions over the course of the past several years.
Many MMA fans found the timing of the post to be somewhat strange. In a post-fight octagon interview with Daniel Cormier, the 29-year-old fighter had just a few hours earlier conveyed a message of peace, love, and fraternity to the audience. He had discussed recent events taking place across the world.
“Guys, I’m sure you’re aware of what’s going on in the world at the moment. When I got into the cage to fight this week, I was not happy. I can see the children passing away. It makes no difference if the event is taking place in Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, Palestine, or the United States of America. It’s tough, guys, when children pass away… We will, God willing, do well in the eyes of the world. I certainly do. It makes no difference if you’re a Muslim, Christian, or Jewish. Let us have a nice life in this world, and may we always be happy.
Watch the post-fight interview with Khamzat Chimaev by clicking the following link:
At UFC 294, Khamzat Chimaev and Kamaru Usman competed in the co-main event, which included a head-to-head matchup. The fight between ‘Borz’ and Paulo Costa was originally scheduled to take place, but the Brazilian withdrew due to an injury. Because of this, Usman decided to step up and take the fight despite the short notice.
The fight was a close contest that went all three rounds and was decided by a majority decision in favor of the 29-year-old fighter.
