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UFC welterweight Joaquin Buckley received a lot of backlash from MMA fans after his recent comments on Khamzat Chimaev and his illness. Buckley has received a lot of criticism in recent months, particularly for making questionable remarks about high-profile fighters during callouts.
Chimaev was expected to face Robert Whittaker in a potential middleweight title eliminator fight at the promotion's inaugural event in Saudi Arabia this weekend. However, he was forced to pull out due to a serious health issue. Some reports cited food poisoning as the reason for the 30-year-old's illness, but nothing has been confirmed or denied by Chimaev's camp.
In light of these developments, Buckley took to X and called Chimaev out for a welterweight showdown. He wrote:
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"Khamzat's weight should be down after getting off the toilet from the runs. @ufc @KChimaev would be a fun one at 170. [smiling emoji] #ICU"
A fan responded to Buckley's post and took a stinging jab at him for calling out high-profile fighters who are unlikely to be interested in fighting him. The user wrote:
"Is your whole career going to be calling for fights everyone knows you ain't getting?"
Buckley responded:
"Pretty much [Smiling emoji]."
Other fans also took to the comments section of the post and heavily criticized Buckley for his remarks:
"His a** is not touching 170. I hate to break it to you," @WarlockOblong commented.
"This loser [redacted] tried so hard to be edgy," @topgunwon1 commented.
"Shut the f* up," @BrayMMA84 commented.
"You’re the biggest loser ever. It’s hilarious," @topgunwon1 commented.
Some fans discussed the perceived skill difference between Chimaev and Buckley in the comments section.
Catch more reactions below:
"The UFC normally do close fights, they don't normally do mismatches," @mmagladiatorss commented.
"Didn't you get knocked out by one of the guys he rag dolled? Like, sit down," @shickenbone commented.
"Even an ill Khamzat smashes you," @ellakerris commented.
Khamzat Chimaev's friend denies food poisoning rumors - "Absolutely bullsh**"
While speaking to the Russian YouTube channel Ushatayka, Khamzat Chimaev's friend and MMA fighter Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov claimed that Chimaev had to pull out of the fight due to food poisoning. However, he admitted that he had not spoken to 'Borz' and that he had heard about the situation from some mutual friends.
Internet personality and Chimaev's close friend Tam Khan recently took to X and stated that the food poisoning rumors were false. He clarified that Chimaev's health deteriorated due to a different reason. Without divulging too many details, he said:
"All these fake rumors about @KChimaev pulling out due to food poisoning is absolutely bullsh**. I was part of the camp & behind the scenes. As a brother I won’t share his dark times but trust me when I say, he was very sick & hospitalized. The guy is a beast & to see him so bad wasn’t a good time for us all. Praying for his recovery & comeback."
Khan also noted that Chimaev tried his best keep the fight together, but had to withdraw when his health deteriorated further.
