UFC fans are convinced star Khamzat Chimaev has been 'cloned' after the emergence of unbeaten prospect Khamzat Maaev.
Maaev kept his unbeaten record intact on Monday when he knocked out Elias Farah in his debut for Bahrain promotion Brave CF, the same promotion Chimaev reigned supreme in before signing for the UFC in 2020. Maaev bares a striking resemblance to Chimaev, with the pair both having the same physique, beard and shaved head.
As if the pair couldn't look more alike, Maaev has also adopted the same nickname as Chimaev in 'Borz' which translates to 'wolf' in Chechen, the region of Russia that both Maaev and Chimaev are from. Fans have been left dumbfounded after Maaev went viral on social media for being the doppelgänger of Chimaev.
"This is getting out of hand. Now there are two of them," one user wrote. "There is a clone factory over there in Chechnya," another added. One fan even spotted that Maaev has a similar scar to Chimaev, adding: "He's got a scar on his cheek instead of his lip."
Chimaev and Maaev were both born in Chechnya but eventually settled in Sweden and Turkey respectively. Maaev is unbeaten in four professional fights with a virtually identical start to his professional career as Chimaev having stopped all of his opponents in the opening round.
Maaev's 41-second win against Farah didn't come without controversy as he appeared to illegally elbow his opponent in the back of the head. Fans have since called for the win to be overturned to a no-contest as one wrote: "Elbow to the back of the head! Isn’t that illegal? Where was the ref?" Another added: Even though I support Khamzat, this should be a no contest due to the illegal elbow to the back of the head that knocked out the opponent."
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Maaev also comes from a wrestling background like Chimaev as he said of his fighting style: “I am a basic wrestler, but I can fight in the stand-up, as well. Every wrestler has punching power and I can knock people out. I don’t pick easy opponents. I want the worthiest opponents in order to put on spectacular fights. People love that. My goal is to become the best."
Chimaev hasn't fought since tapping out Kevin Holland in less than two minutes at UFC 279 last September. 'Borz' recently outlined his plans to fight at UFC Paris in September and also compete at UFC 294, which takes place in Abu Dhabi the following month.
