Khamzat Chimaev ‘motivated’ by UFC 279 paycheck

Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight division fighter Khamzat Chimaev has said he is excited to earn his first major paycheck. Chimaev is just days away from his bout against Nate Diaz. He said he felt “motivated” by the money the fight would potentially bring.

Chimaev will go against Diaz on September 10 in the upcoming UFC 279 event, live from T-Mobile Arena in Nevada. He is currently third in the welterweight rankings.

During a recent interview with ESPN MMA reporter Brett Okamoto, Chimaev was asked about how he felt about the upcoming match, to which he answered:

“Yeah, I never made that much money in all my career – or my life,” Chimaev said. “It feels kinda amazing. (I’m) more happy, like more motivated – yeah, it feels good.”

When asked what he would do with the money, Chimaev said he did not have any plan. He said he only thought of taking “[Diaz’s] head,” adding that he would make a plan after he received the money. He then stressed that he was ready to arrange a “funeral” for Diaz.

Throughout his career in the UFC so far, Chimaev has been undefeated. He was given the Fight of the Night award after defeating Gilbert Burns and the Performance of the Night after dominating John Phillips, Rhys McKee, Gerald Meerschaert, and Li Jingliang.

In 2020, Chimaev was presented with the UFC Honors Debut of the Year award. That year, he recorded the fastest consecutive win and the quickest three-fight win streak in UFC history. He competed in Brave Combat Federation, a Middle East MMA promotion, before joining the UFC.

His opponent, Diaz, joined the UFC after he became the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 5, a reality television series produced by the UFC. He competed in World Extreme Cagefighting, Strikeforce and Pancrase before he joined the championship. Diaz recently lost with a unanimous decision to Leon Edwards, his opponent in UFC 263.