Khamzat Chimaev left no doubts at UFC 319, overwhelming Dricus Du Plessis with relentless wrestling pressure to claim the middleweight world title.
The Chechen star controlled nearly every second of the fight, holding Du Plessis down for almost five full rounds in a suffocating performance.
While some fans may have hoped for more explosive exchanges, Chimaev’s approach highlighted his reputation as one of the most feared fighters in the sport.
On the Uncrowned Post-Fight Show, journalist Petesy Carroll detailed what makes Chimaev’s grappling so different from others:
What this guy is doing is he’s not actually allowing you to grapple him.
He’s taking you down…
Once top position is established against a wrestler that dominant, it doesn’t really matter how good your guard is, you know?Fluffy [Anthony Hernandez] is an exceptional grappler as well…
But what this guy seems to be doing is just taking guys’ legs out of the equation immediately.
Carroll noted that Chimaev wastes no time once the fight hits the mat:
He takes down, he moves to side control, and as we saw today with the crucifix, just immediately going back to that.
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