Dana Details ‘Crazy’ Interaction With Khamzat

UFC welterweight phenom Khamzat Chimaev, taking a page from the Khabib Nurmagomedov playbook, picked up Li Jingliang and dumped him on the canvas during their UFC 267 battle last weekend in Abu Dhabi, but not before screaming at promotion president Dana White.

So what important message did “Borz” deliver to the Las Vegas fight boss?

“He was yelling crazy shit at me the whole fight,” White told reporters at the UFC 267 post-fight press conference (transcribed by MMA Fighting). “I don’t know why but basically just saying, ‘I’m going to fight everybody, I’ll fight Brock Lesnar, I don’t care who it is.’ He was just yelling stuff like that.”

Chimaev (10-0) treated Jingliang like Jason Voorhees treats teenage counselors at Camp Crystal Lake and validated his hype by way of first-round submission. While “Borz” is already setting his sights on the top of the division, White was non-committal on his next fight — but expects to see the Russian-born Swede in the Top 10.

“It’s tough once you start to break into the top 10, which he will do on Tuesday,” White said in regards to a fast turnaround for Chimaev. “I don’t know. We would figure it out if that’s what he really wanted to do. I’m sure the guy does want to fight. We’ll get home and figure out what’s next for him.”

No question Chimaev, 27, is looking to make up for lost time after spending more than a year on the sidelines recovering from COVID-19. But most fighters in the welterweight Top 10 are strategic about who (and when) they fight in order to preserve their spot in the division title chase, so “Borz” could find himself the loneliest fighter at 170 pounds.

For more results and fallout from UFC 267 click here.