Undefeated Swedish fighter Khamzat Chimaev continues to do everything possible to create as much noise around his name as possible. The wolf is not shy about rude words addressed to fans of mixed martial arts, he practices dirty insults to his rivals, and now he decided to troll Khabib Nurmagomedov himself, sharply responding to criticism.

Is he provoking Orel to meet in the octagon?

“Do not do that”

A Chechen fighter with a Swedish passport, Khamzat Chimaev, failed the weigh-in before the scheduled fight with Nate Diaz at UFC 279. The oversight did not stop Volk from shining at the fight evening – in catchweight he defeated the American Kevin Holland, strangling his opponent in the first round. A bright victory did not save Chimaev from criticism from former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

– If you are a Muslim, you need to surround yourself with good people, Muslims, who will say: “Hey, don’t do this.” I recently watched the weigh-in of Khamzat Chimaev. I followed what was happening with his weight, and looked at his team. There are no Muslims around him, and this is very bad. Because if you are a Muslim, then you need good, strong people around you. They will say: “Come back, do it,” Ringside quotes Khabib.

Khabib Nurmagomedov / Photo: © Carmen Mandato / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

Eagle’s opinion, of course, deserves attention, but is probably not indisputable. Perhaps someone with the same success could advise the Swedish fighter to surround himself with Hare Krishnas or Mormons – there should also be good and strong people among them. However, the advice is not an indispensable call to action, and Habib shared his thoughts with the best of intentions.

In any case, in order not to get into unnecessary disputes with a respected colleague, the Wolf could well ignore the attack on himself or mark himself with a neutral comment. Since Chimaev does not differ in particular restraint, instead of gratitude, he rewarded Nurmagomedov with a portion of trolling with a very thick hint.

“I just ate too much tiramisu and that’s why my fight with Tony Ferguson was canceled five times. We have already said ours, let the world say it now,” Chimaev commented on Khabib’s advice on social networks.

Will the wolf miss?

Why Chimaev reacted in this way is a debatable question. Does he really not recognize any authorities, or is he simply trying to maintain the reputation of a scandalous fighter by any means? Khabib’s remark is quite harmless, to hurt the vanity of a self-confident person. Is this a reason to recall the old story of the failed confrontation between Nurmagomedov and Ferguson, and even file it in such a way that all five attempts to organize the duel failed because of the Russian?

Photo: © Chris Unger / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.com

It is quite possible that Chimaev, without a second thought, pointed out to Orel his imperfection, and since he was not used to climbing into his pocket for a word, it turned out as it happened. There is a possibility that the story will flow into a peaceful direction and, perhaps, it will even come to an apology for being harsh.

It is worth admitting another option – Khamzat is not without reason trying to inflate a conflict with Khabib out of the blue. He is an ambitious and self-confident guy, and why not create a reserve for a possible fight with a Dagestani in the octagon? Although Orel competed in lightweight, and Chimaev did not even recently fit into the welterweight category, hypothetically, a confrontation can be arranged. It is enough to note here that Nurmagomedov was not a lightweight by nature, he climbed into his category at times with great difficulty.

Another question is that to lure Nurmagomedov into the octagon is a task from the realm of fantasy. Eagle was not interested in possible fights with McGregor, Oliveira, Adesanya and anyone else – he seems to have decided everything for himself a long time ago. This, of course, does not mean that no one else will attempt to hurt Khabib in order to return him.

Whether the Swede pursues this goal after a single exchange of verbal attacks is unclear. However, it should be noted that the beginning of a possible conflict has been laid. For the leadership of the UFC, the development of history will be a real gift, and for Khamzat there will be a great opportunity to take a grand step in his career. It is not yet clear why Khabib would take the risk. But if a potential opponent continues in the same vein and touches Nurmagomedov to the quick, then logic may well give way to emotions. But will the Wolf not miss, risking grinning at the Eagle?