Terror! Former UFC champion reports that Chimaev was 'on the verge of death' and reveals a multi-million dollar offer for Strickland: 'Green vomit'

Khamzat Shimaev Focused before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/YouTube/UFC

the last fight of Khamzat Shimaev The UFC continues to generate buzz. In May, in New Jersey (USA), the feared Chechen fighter put his middleweight (up to 83,9 kg) title on the line for the first time against... Sean Strickland and ended up surprised, losing by split decision. And, according to TJ DillashawThe shocking setback for 'Borz', former king of the bantamweight division (up to 61,2 kg) in the company, has an explanation, and it's frightening.

In an interview with the website 'MMA Fighting', the veteran reinforced the idea that Chimaev suffered so much during the weight cut that he arrived in no condition to compete against his rival. It's worth remembering that 'Borz', despite being considered a strong favorite by bookmakers to win, failed to finish Strickland in the first round and, in the following round, tired quickly, shocking fans and sports professionals.

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Having closely followed Chimaev's training camp, Dillashaw emphasized that Chimaev made a serious mistake in the final stretch of preparation and experienced terrifying moments, even fearing the worst. This was not the first time the Chechen had problems cutting weight. In the past, 'Borz' failed to make weight when competing in the welterweight division (up to 77,1 kg) and now he is even considering moving up to the light heavyweight division (up to 93 kg).

“Chimaev looked like an animal in camp, like he was unbeatable. There was no chance he could lose, but there are a lot of fraudulent people in the world. The way they made him cut weight was horrible. I introduced him to Sam Calavitta, who is the best in the business. If you want to achieve peak performance, he's the right guy. But unfortunately, they trusted someone else to handle part of his nutrition and weight cut at the end, and that ruined everything. His body collapsed,” said the MMA legend.

“You’re literally dying. Your body is telling you so. Calavitta told them, ‘Hey, that’s how much water he should drink.’ They didn’t listen. So, Chimaev drank a quarter of the water he should have, lost four times more weight than he should have, and his body couldn’t handle it. He didn’t want to cut weight. He wanted to give Strickland a million dollars (approximately R$5 million at the current exchange rate) and say, ‘Hey, keep the money. I can’t make weight. I’m going to die.’ This guy has half a thyroid. His metabolism is half that of a normal man.”

“If you’re not treating it the right way, you can die. That’s why the weight cut is difficult for him. I truly believe Chimaev was on the verge of death during the weight cut. I knew he wasn’t eating properly. They were posting things and his nutritionist was too. I thought, ‘Wow, Calavitta wouldn’t let him eat that.’ I saw him sitting in the bathtub trying to lose weight and Calavitta wouldn’t allow it. I heard the story of what happened to him, vomiting green and many scary things. He shouldn’t have struggled,” he concluded.

Chimaev's fighters in MMA

Khamzat ShimaevBorz, 32, is one of the best and most fearsome MMA fighters today. The Russian began his career in the sport in 2018, debuted in the UFC in 2020, and became middleweight champion in 2025. Currently, he is ranked first in the division. Previously, 'Borz' also excelled in the welterweight division (up to 77,1 kg).

In this modality, the athlete competed in 16 fights, winning 15, 12 of which were by stoppage (six by knockout and six by submission), and losing once. His main victories were against Dricus du Plessis, Gilbert Durinho, Kamaru Usman e Robert whittaker.