Joaquin Buckley has reacted to Khamzat Chimaev’s challenge, in which 'Borz' claimed anyone who submits him during training will be awarded a million rubles.
Chimaev, the unbeaten UFC middleweight, is renowned for his grappling and wrestling prowess and is regarded as the division's most feared contender. 'Borz' has three submission wins in his last five UFC bouts.
In his most recent outing, Chimaev submitted Robert Whittaker in round 1 with a face crank. Whittaker tapped quickly because of the force of the hold and also suffered a dental injury during the bout.
Recently, Chimaev said the following at the ACA 183 press conference:
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"Anyone who submits me during training gets a million rubles from me. It hasn't happened in a long time. When I'm fooling around with young guys, I give up my neck, but when we have a serious grappling match, I offer a million rubles to anyone."
ESPN MMA on Instagram shared this challenge offered by Chimaev, in a post captioned:
"Khamzat Chimaev puts out a challenge to try and submit him during training 😳 (via @khamzat_chimaev @tigermuaythai)"
Check out Khamzat Chimaev's comments in the second clip of the post below:
The post caught the attention of Buckley, who didn’t seem interested in submitting 'Borz.' Instead, he enquired:
"How much to knock him out 😴"
Check out Joaquin Buckley's comment below:
![Joaquin Buckley's comment [Image courtesy: @ESPN MMA on Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=190 190w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=720 720w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=640 640w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=1045 1045w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=1200 1200w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=1460 1460w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg?w=1600 1600w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/e08a3-17392694592302-1920.jpg 1920w)
In the UFC, Buckley and Chimaev compete in different weight classes. But 'New Mansa' is renowned for his intense striking ability, and has won most of his fights by knockout.
Buckley most recently used his striking prowess to leave Colby Covington bloodied at UFC Tampa. He secured a win via TKO (doctor's stoppage) in round 3, as Covington was deemed unfit to continue.
Dricus du Plessis wants to fight Khamzat Chimaev next
At UFC 312 reigning middleweight king Dricus du Plessis defended his strap with a win over Sean Strickland. Du Plessis, who would prefer to take on more challenges and elite contenders, stated at the post-fight conference that he currently has no plans to move to a different weight class.
With that being said, Khamzat Chimaev, the no-3-ranked middleweight contender, could be next in line for a shot at the undisputed title.
'Stillknocks' expressed the desire to fight 'Borz' next during the post-fight presser following UFC 312, saying:
"Khamzat is next. I want to make sure that there’s no question I’m the GOAT of the middleweight division... I want Khamzat next. He deserves a hiding.”
Check out Dricus du Plessis's comments below: