Chimaev gets promoted to BJJ brown belt after win at UFC 294

Khamzat Chimaev was promoted to brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu after earning the decision win in his match against former UFC Welterweight Champion, Kimara Usman, at UFC 294.

Coming back from one-year out, Chimaev returned to the Middleweight division at UFC 294 on October 21. Chimaev was originally scheduled to fight former Middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa. However, due to surgery meaning Costa had to pull out of the fight, Chimaev was set to face former UFC Welterweight Champion, Usman. 

Usman, being known for his top-tier takedown defence, had a different percentage on his takedown defences by the end of the fight; with Chimaev being relentless with his takedown chains throughout.

For this fight Usman went down a weight and it showed in his pace, Chimaev was just too fast for him, and as a result he got dominated by being mauled by the Russian wrestler; especially in round one. 

Despite Chimaev attempting a few chokes from the back during the first round, Usman kept a good base and ensured Chimaev was simply too high up on his back to get a choke. This allowed Usman to fight through the first round with Chimaev’s glue-like back control.

Making his mark in the UFC

From the day of his debut, Chimaev made his mark on the UFC. He made his promotional debut in a Middleweight fight against John Phillips, replacing Duško Todorović, in July 2020. He won the fight via submission in the second round, bagging himself the Performance of the Night bonus. It’s only been upwards since then.

Additionally, just 10 short days after the fight against Phillips, Chimaev faced Rhys McKee in the Welterweight division and he won that fight in the first round too. Chimaev finished the match via technical knockout, earning himself his second Performance of the Night bonus award.

Chimaev’s professional MMA record currently stands at a perfect 13-0.

One thing is for certain, Chimaev is one dangerous BJJ brown belt.