Khamzat Chimaev gets 100% real about his chances of fighting at the UFC White House event: "Look at my face"

With the historic UFC White House card set to happen as part of the America250 celebrations, many MMA stars have shot their shot for a spot at the event. Khamzat Chimaev, for one, doesn't have high hopes that he'd make the lineup.

Despite being one of the promotion's top stars for the past few years, 'Borz' has continually found it a Herculean task to get his U.S. visa, with many of his reportedly planned fights failing to materialize owing to this.

The Chechen-born Emirati will, however, fight Dricus du Plessis at UFC 319 in Chicago, Illinois. Many believe such a development was made possible owing to Donald Trump's close association with the UFC brass.

Talking to TheMacLife ahead of UFC 319, Chimaev hinted at Trump's involvement in resolving his visa issues for next weekend's fight:

"I didn't have the visa, that's why I only fought once, in Abu Dhabi. So now, Donald Trump, he heard, so we go for a fight."

Furthermore, he explained why he'd most likely not feature on the UFC White House card, saying:

"Bro, look at my face, I don't think they'll let me come over there, bro."

Check out Khamzat Chimaev's comments below:

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@HappyPunch

“Bro, look at my face. I don’t think they’ll let me come over there.” 😭 - Khamzat Chimaev on fighting at the White House UFC event (via @TheMacLife)

Promotional elites, including Conor McGregor and Jon Jones, have thrown their hats in for the headlining spot at the historic event. However, the UFC has yet to officially release the lineup for the fight card.

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Khamzat Chimaev's coach dispels cardio concerns

Cardio has long been seen as a potential shortcoming in Khamzat Chimaev's game. The only two times his fights went the full distance, 'Borz's' dominance and activity waned considerably.

However, with UFC 319 approaching, the grappling aficionado's coach, Joakim Karlsson, is convinced that his fighter has made huge strides in cardio. Speaking to the press ahead of the title fight, he said:

"You can't compare Khamzat now, this time, to one, two years ago. It's totally different. He has a different strength and conditioning coach now. So it's a different level now. So, I don't think it's fair to compare him to maybe one, two years ago. It's not the same."

Chimaev has enlisted the help of renowned strength and conditioning coach Sam Calavitta to help him prepare for du Plessis. May, including former UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw, believe Calavitta's drills greatly enhance fighters' endurance.