"Here we don't play wrestling" - When Khamzat Chimaev slammed Bo Nickal for criticizing his wrestling  

Khamzat Chimaev once fired back at Bo Nickal for criticizing his wrestling ability. It came after the American previously stated he would have no issues against 'Borz' in the octagon.

Before making the switch to MMA, Nickal was a professional wrestler hoping to make it to the Olympics with the United States. The 29-year-old possesses serious wrestling pedigree, as he is a three-time NCAA Division I national champion, a three-time Big Ten Conference champion and the US Open national champion.

His professional MMA debut then came in 2022 for Jorge Masvidal's iKON FC 3, where he knocked out John Noland in the first round. His victory caught the eyes of the UFC brass, where he went on to pick up two victories on Dana White's Contender Series before then winning four straight UFC bouts. His recent victory was a unanimous decision win over Paul Craig at UFC 309.

Whilst many UFC newcomers opt to keep their heads down and quietly pick up wins, Bo Nickal has done the opposite. Since making his UFC debut in 2023, the American has regularly called for a bout against Khamzat Chimaev.

Nickal has often played down Chimaev's wrestling ability and believes that he has the skills to hand 'Borz' the first loss of his professional career. Chimaev (14-0) fiercely disagrees, however, and he once fired back while speaking to the UFC media. He said:

"This guy [Nickal] speaks big bullsh*t man. I don't know what he's saying, he's not wrestling for the points. Here, we don't play wrestling. It's fighting. I don't care if somebody takes me down. I don't think this guy is going to come to the cage and come and take me down. It's not wrestling."

Check out Khamzat Chimaev's comments below:

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Robert Whittaker says Khamzat Chimaev must finish Dricus du Plessis

Khamzat Chimaev and Dricus du Plessis appear to set to clash for the middleweight title in the near future. While nothing has yet been confirmed by the UFC, 'Borz' secured himself as the No.1 contender with his dominant victory over Robert Whittaker last year.

'The Reaper', who has suffered defeats to both men, recently shared his thoughts on their potential clash. Speaking in an interview with Submission Radio, Whittaker stated that he can see Chimaev winning but only via finish. He explained:

"If Chimaev can't get DDP out of there, DDP wins. DDP wins almost every fight [where] you can't get rid of him, right? Because he's like mold dude [laughs]... Honestly, dude. He's not going anywhere. He'll just wear you down and belt you up until he wins."

Check out Robert Whittaker's comments below (8:05):