Khamzat Chimaev has a new dance partner — and it is a former UFC middleweight champion who knows a thing or two about short-notice wars.
Chimaev will face former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman after an injury forced Colby Covington out of their scheduled wrestling match at Real American Freestyle's Abu Dhabi event on November 14. Real American Freestyle announced the replacement on Monday. The bout will headline the event at Etihad Arena, with the promotion's light heavyweight crossover championship at stake. Chimaev was originally scheduled to challenge Covington for the cruiserweight crossover title.
Covington had won five consecutive RAF matches before withdrawing. His withdrawal follows a submission loss to UFC bantamweight Raul Rosas Jr. in a grappling contest at Hype FC in Rome on November 3, where Rosas secured a rear-naked choke in approximately 40 seconds.
Chimaev, a former UFC middleweight champion, has earned RAF victories over Dillon Danis, Tyron Woodley and Gilbert Burns. He also defeated Robbie Lawler at RAF 14 in October. The undefeated wrestling standout has become one of the promotion's biggest draws, and the Abu Dhabi headliner keeps him in the spotlight on one of the biggest stages in the sport.
Weidman steps in with his own history in the promotion. He lost a decision to Covington in his only previous RAF appearance, at RAF 9 in May. The former champion — the man who ended Anderson Silva's legendary title reign — now gets a chance to bounce back against one of the most feared wrestlers in combat sports, on four days' notice, for a championship.
The event airs on Fox Nation in the United States and Starzplay in the Middle East and North Africa.
The DAOS take: short-notice fights are where legends are made and where legends get exposed — and Weidman has lived both sides of that coin. Chimaev is the favorite for a reason, but Weidman is a former champion with nothing to lose and a wrestling base that can keep this honest. On November 14 in Abu Dhabi, we find out whether the new dance partner can make Chimaev miss a step.
Sources: Sherdog
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