British MMA icon Micheal Bisping was eagerly watching the Khamzat Chimaev vs Gilbert Burns fight at UFC 273 this weekend. The once brash brit turned beloved commentator has made two youtube videos since the fight giving his thoughts on Chimaevs hard-earned win.
“The Count,” thinks that one-half of the “Smesh Bros” may have underestimated Burns due to his uncontested steamrolling of his opponents thus far.
“Khamzat’s gonna learn and grow from that because he approached that fight — I think Khamzat went into that one a little bit overconfident,”
“I think he went in there expecting to steamroll Gilbert Burns. He thought he would just go right through him, and you can’t always think that. His history so far, he’s undefeated, and his first [UFC] fights, that’s what he did, he just mangled everybody”.
Despite the perceived miscalculation by Khamzat, Bisping believes that this was a positive overall.
“I don’t think anyone didn’t enjoy that fight and I think for Khamzat it was such a great fight for his development as a fighter, for his evolution as a fighter”
“The reason I think that’s good for Khamzat, he’s gonna learn you can’t always just go out there and dominate people the way you think you’re going to. He thought he was gonna walk through him and he went in there with no real game plan. Khamzat’s a much bigger guy, he’s a much longer guy, he’s got way longer arms, way longer reach.”
“He could’ve made that a tougher fight for Gilbert if he’d have just employed a bit of strategy… But he didn’t do that. He just went straight forward, stuck in the pocket, took away his own reach advantage, and threw down, and in a fight like that, anyone can win. Gilbert Burns is extremely powerful so that’s not the smartest thing. So I think he’s gonna learn from that and I think he’s gonna come back better,”
Khamzat Chimaev Vs. Colby Covington: Chaos Meets Chaos
In a follow-up video, Bisping gave his thoughts on Khamzat Chimaevs potential upcoming date with Colby Covington, one of only three men above the burgeoning megastar in the rankings.
“I don’t think that was the best Khamzat. That was a great fight. Khazmat proved he can be the hammer and the nail,”
He extended his thoughts:
“Some people, when they start hitting adversity, they wilt and they look for a way out, but Khamzat Chimaev isn’t that guy. Khamzat definitely showed last night he can be a hammer and a nail, so he’s got all the ingredients.”
Clearly high on the 27-year-olds prospects, he backs him to topple Covington when the pair meet eventually.
“I’d probably lean towards Khamzat, which again sounds crazy, but I think the wrestling of Khamzat would nullify Colby’s wrestling,” he stated.
“So, if you take the wrestling out of it, then we’re gonna go to striking. Well, Khamzat has more power. Colby has more output, and that’s what it comes down to.”
Do you agree with “The Count?, or Does Colby get it done?
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Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
