Outraged by statistics about Khamzat Chimaev, former referee highlights achievements of Royce Gracie

J. McCarthy (left) questions K. Chimaev's UFC statistics. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram

It only gives Khamzat Shimaev in the MMA community. After shining in UFC Las Vegas 11, event held on Saturday (19), in the USA, by knocking out Gerald meerschaert in just 17 seconds, the Swede received a lot of praise, saw his hype grow even more, but critics also began to emerge. And Big John McCarthy is one of them.

Quite vocal, the former referee and current Bellator commentator believes that the UFC is pushing hard to promote its newest product. To the podcast Weight In, Josh thomson, Big John considers the statistic that presents Chimaev as the fighter who won three fights the fastest for the organization to be false and explained his point of view by recalling the organization's past.

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“I understand that the UFC is fueling the hype around Chimaev and I don't blame anyone who does that. He is real! But, before the fight, the first thing they said was that he would be the fastest athlete to win three fights in the UFC. I was surprised, because the UFC has better statistics. This is false! The UFC held tournaments. Okay, people compare old athletes with new ones, but before, there were three fights per event and for a long time. Why are they trying to create statistics that are horrible and mean nothing?” McCarthy said.

Still dissatisfied, Big John took to Twitter, again, to criticize the UFC's stance and the data released by journalist Megan Olivi, cited the achievements of Royce gracie to justify his thinking and asked that the company, press and fans not forget the fighters of the past.

“Sorry UFC and Megan Olivi, but saying that Chimaev is the athlete who won three fights the fastest in the UFC is wrong! How about a guy named Royce gracie, who did it in one night, at UFC 1, and then against four more, at UFC 2? This is a false statistic! The kid is great, but don’t forget the old athletes,” McCarthy posted.

The tournament mentioned by Big John McCarthy took place in the first edition of the UFC, on November 12, 1993. At the time, Royce gracie submitted Art Jimmerson, Ken Shamrock and Gerard Gordeau in the first round. At UFC 2, held on March 11, 1994, Royce submitted Minoki Ichihara, Jason DeLucia, Remco Pardoel and knocked out Patrick Smith, all in the first round. Royce returned to UFC 4, on December 16, 1994, and submitted Ron van Clief, Keith Hackney and Dan Severn in the first round. Interestingly, the company abandoned this format, which is used frequently by Bellator, its biggest competitor.