Andreas Michael says Khamzat Chimaev’s body shut down during his weight cut for UFC 279.
Chimaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC), who was scheduled to face Nate Diaz in this past Saturday’s headliner at T-Mobile Arena, came in 7.5 pounds over the welterweight limit. As a result, the fight card was shuffled and Chimaev fought Kevin Holland, instead. Diaz fought Tony Ferguson in the main event.
Michael said Chimaev was experiencing issues during the cut and wasn’t going to jeopardize his star student’s health, even though they were devastated the fight with Diaz fell through.
“We took the first four kilos quite easy, and then it’s like, ‘We’re going to take the rest in the morning,'” Michael told ESPN. “So we had about 2.5-3 kilos left. But then some complications started happening during the night. (Chimaev) started getting cramps, started throwing up, he started being dizzy. His body was seizing up, and we called the UFC. We called the physician and we wanted the advice from them, because I’m not a doctor. I don’t know what’s safe and not safe, and I always take the safe route. We’re playing with people’s lives here – it’s not a joke.
“Actually, he had about six pounds to lose, but we drank before because he needed to hydrate a little bit before we weighed in, with the physician’s recommendation. Remember that: The doctor recommended this. I will not go against the doctor.”
Michael said Chimaev came into the camp heavier than usual and didn’t have the adequate amount of time he’s accustomed to for his cut down to 170 pounds. Michael wanted to make sure his camp was focused on the fight itself, not just the weight cut.
“He’s never missed weight any other time before that, so I don’t know why everyone’s acting as if he’s always missing weight,” Michael said. “It’s the first time. Yes, he has had a hard time making weight, and that’s on him. He trains hard and he likes to eat to have energy. He trains harder than anyone, but that comes with consequences. You have to fuel the machine.
“You need time to get down to the reasonable weight before you start your camp. Diaz came in the end of August. We said, ‘Can we move it a little bit, please, because it’s a legacy fight, that one. Of course we would love that fight.’ They moved it like one and a half weeks after that, two weeks after that, and I think we had five or six weeks of preparation to get into camp when we heard about it, and he was already about 93-94 kilos (205-207 pounds) starting his camp. So I was thinking like this: Should I make the camp all about his weight, or should I make the camp him training good to win?”
Chimaev appeared to face no physical issues on fight night. He ran through Holland for a first-round submission in a 180-pound catchweight bout.
