"See you soon x15", "Get Khamzat back in there" - Fans react to Khamzat Chimaev assuring MMA community about his comeback

Khamzat Chimaev appeared set for the biggest opportunity of his mixed martial arts career this weekend as he was set to face Robert Whittaker in the main event of UFC on ABC 6 in a potential title eliminator. Instead, the No. 11-ranked middleweight was forced to withdraw from the bout due to what has been described as a persistent illness.

There had been rumors that 'Borz' could walk away from the sport as his health issues have been ongoing for quite some time. He took to Instagram on Tuesday to reveal that will not be the case. Championship Rounds shared Chimaev's comments to X, captioning the post:

"Khamzat Chimaev via. Instagram “Will be back 💯” #UFC #MMA"

Check out the post from Championship Rounds below:

Fans had a mixed reaction to Chimaev's comments. @What_a_Bets trolled the undefeated fighter by using his own words - which he has seemingly reiterated whenever a title has switched has hands - against him, stating:

"See you soon x15 - Khamzat"

@mehmet_istanbu called for 'Borz' to face Whittaker instead of his replacement, Ikram Aliskerov:

"Honestly cancel the Ikram fight. Get Khamzat back in there"

@XTWIITTY questioned if the No.11-ranked middleweight is hospitalized or training:

"is bro training or is he in the hospital. which one is it"

@TheCSMatrixer suggested that Chimaev may be a three-round fighter:

"He needs a 3 rounder when he comes back. Every time he gets scheduled for a 5 rounder he always gets injured or ill. Maybe he overtrains for 5 rounders and doesnt recover properly which is why he gets injured or his immune system gets weak and therefore he gets ill"

Check out the best fan reactions below:

Fan reactions

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Bo Nickal nearly replaced Khamzat Chimaev at UFC Saudi Arabia

The UFC has shown that they do a great job of saving cards when fighters pull out on short notice. After Khamzat Chimaev withdrew from his bout with Robert Whittaker - which was set to headline the promotion's first trip to Saudi Arabia this upcoming weekend - Ikram Aliskerov was allowed to face the No. 3-ranked middleweight.

Speaking on his Nickals and Dimes podcast, Bo Nickal recently revealed that he missed a call to step in for 'Borz', stating:

"I did get a call. Unfortunately, I got a call while I was in the mountains of Montana and I didn't get back to cell service for three days. I came back into cell service to a few text messages saying, 'call me back, call me back, call me back' and it was too late. I was like, 'okay'."

Check out Bo Nickal's comments on replacing Khamzat Chimaev below:

Nickal would have had the toughest test of his mixed martial arts career had he stepped in against Whittaker. The opportunity would have also been tremendous as a win would have elevated him into the top five of the middleweight rankings - and likely put him in title contention.