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Russian mixed martial artist, Khamzat Chimaev has hailed retired footballer, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, after beating Nigerian-born American fighter, Kamaru Usman.
Ibrahimovic was in attendance at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi when Khamzat Chimaev took on Usman in a Middleweight bout on Saturday. The Russian fighter won the bout via a majority decision.
Even though the bout was Usman’s first fight in the Middleweight division, he was expected to defeat Chimaev, a target he couldn’t achieve. Recall that Usman agreed to fight Chimaev in the last minute after Chimaev’s initial opponent, Paulo Costa withdrew from the bout due to an injury.
In the bout, Chimaev proved to be more experienced than Usman who used to be a domineering force in the lower division, Welterweight.
The 29-year-old Russian fighter put Usman on the canvas and tried to force the Nigerian-born fighter into submission, but he resisted and prolonged the fight into the third round.
At the end of the bout, Khamzat Chimaev won as the three judges scored the fight: 29–27, 29–27, and 28–28.
Chimaev seemed emotional after winning, and he spent a good deal of his post-fight speech thanking everyone who had come to support him, including football legend Ibrahimović.
He said, “I didn’t come here for the titles, just to make money and be happy.
“Dana [White] and Hunter [Campbell], thank you for everything. I was in the gym. A small room, two meters. All I wanted was just better training stuff.
“I didn’t have food, it’s because of these I am who I am today.
“Zlatan, thank you, brother. You come to support me. It’s crazy!
“I love my job. I love these guys and I’m happy I was good for my mum today.”
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