Longtime UFC analyst Joe Rogan believes Khamzat Chimaev might be making a mistake in competing at RAF 10 so soon after UFC 328.
Khamzat Chimaev suffered the first defeat of his otherwise stellar MMA career last Saturday at UFC 328.
Chimaev, who entered UFC 328 as the middleweight champ, suffered a split decision defeat to Sean Strickland in the main event. After a quick start in Round 1, Chimaev’s cardio and pace faded as the fight went on, but the fight ended up being a competitive, five-round war between the two rivals.
Despite just being hours removed from the loss, Chimaev is already looking ahead to what’s next. He’ll make his Real American Freestyle wrestling debut at RAF 10 next month against Dillon Danis.
As Chimaev ponders whether or not to stay at middleweight or to move to light heavyweight in his UFC career, Joe Rogan believes that Chimaev getting right back into a competitive environment could be a mistake.
Joe Rogan fears Khamzat Chimaev will blow his knee out in quick turnaround at RAF 10
In a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan reacted to Chimaev’s quick turnaround after UFC 328.
“I don’t know if he [should be] interested in doing that,” Rogan said of Chimaev.
“Here is my fear. There was a recent event that was a very weird event. I don’t know who did it, but it was kicks to the legs, punches to the body, and jiu-jitsu. It was weird. Gleison Tibau was fighting, and he took this guy down.
“The guy is trying to avoid the takedown, and he catches his knee in a weird way, and it blows out. So that could happen to f****** anybody,” Rogan continued. “Wrestlers blow their knees out all the time. It’s just a part of the craziness of explosive movement.” (h/t Bloody Elbow)
Rogan’s concerns hold some merit, especially after Chimaev’s scary weight cut for UFC 328. After cutting around 50 pounds to make the middleweight limit, Chimaev looked depleted at the official weigh-in, and his brother claimed his body nearly ‘shut down’ during the process.
Who should Khamzat Chimaev fight next after UFC 328? Let us know in the comments!