Khamzat Chimaev has ambitions beyond the UFC. He is also eyeing up an Olympic wrestling gold medal to go alongside his world title.
The Chechen-born middleweight is set to defend his title for the first time at UFC 328, where he will face off against Sean Strickland.
He has also agreed to make his debut for the RAF Wrestling later this year, with fans eager to see a match-up between him and Kyle Snyder.
Chimaev isn’t looking for that kind of exhibition, though. He wants to compete against Olympic-level wrestlers by qualifying for the Games themselves, representing his adopted home of the United Arab Emirates.
Khamzat Chimaev considers future in Olympic Wrestling
During a busy media day ahead of his bout against Sean Strickland, Khamzat Chimaev told reporters that he’s considering an Olympic run. He also expressed interest in climbing up to light heavyweight and even heavyweight within the UFC.
Chimaev was asked by Bloody Elbow if he might face Snyder during his upcoming RAF Wrestling matches later this year, and replied: “If the pay is good, then sure. But if it’s not easy money then I don’t want that kind of match.
“If I want to wrestle Olympic champs then I’m going to go in the Olympic games for the UAE, so it’s one of the opportunities too… We’ve got to see because right now I’m just focused on this fight and getting back to Abu Dhabi to fight there. Then after that we will think about it.”
As for comparing winning Olympic gold with a UFC title, Chimaev replied that he is simply “trying to find a way to compete with someone.” He also noted that “it will be very hard to get gold, you’ve really got to work for that because there are a lot of good guys over there at my weight.”
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