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Khamzat Chimaev was afraid that he might have got cancer when he announced his shock retirement from MMA earlier this month.
While talking to Russian sports outlet RT Sport MMA, Khamzat Chimaev revealed that his health started deteriorating after he resumed training in Las Vegas on the advice of professionals. Chimaev had flown to Sin City for the treatment of lingering Covid-19 symptoms. The reverse effect severely affected Chimaev's mental state and pushed him to the extent of contemplating retirement. Luckily, the Chechen-Swedish fighter is on the way to recovery and we will see him in action soon enough.
"Yes. It (medical care in Las Vegas) was good but they made me train. I was doing good at first. Then they told me that I could start cardio training and I felt sick again. I went to the bathroom and started coughing up blood. That just messed up my mind a little honestly. It scared me, Cancer? Like, 'I have been sick for so long. Why doesn't it go away?' Different thoughts were going through my mind," Khamzat Chimaev said.
After Khamzat Chimaev had to pull out of his scheduled fight with No.3 ranked welterweight Leon Edwards in February 2021, the 26-year-old announced his retirement through an Instagram post. The bout cancelation was caused due to lingering symptoms of Covid-19 infection suffered by Chimaev.
Upon his arrival in the UFC, Khamzat Chimaev quickly grabbed fight fans' attention with his exciting fighting style and flamboyant personality. A prospective future champion with the potential to become one of the biggest pay-per-view stars, Khamzat Chimaev's retirement came as a shock to the MMA community.
However, Chimaev distanced himself from the retirement talk earlier this week and hinted at a potential comeback through another Instagram post. Chimaev will most likely face the veteran fighter Neil Magny in his comeback fight. Magny had previously shown keen interest in fighting Khamzat Chimaev after other top-ranked middleweight and welterweight fighters turned down the fight.
'He got affected by what he wasn't supposed to be doing' - Dana White on Khamzat Chimaev
UFC president Dana White is not one to leave any stone unturned. White never accepted Chimaev's retirement talk and tried to convince Chimaev to reconsider his decision after the latter's announcement.
In an interview with Aaron Bronsteter of TSN Network, Dana White revealed that actively training while still being on medication caused Khamzat Chimaev's health to deteriorate. He also revealed that Chimaev's impatient attitude towards fighting affected his state of mind as well.
"He was on serious medication. He was supposed to be resting and relaxing, but he wasn't! He was in the gym, training like an animal, and he got sick again, he got affected by doing what he wasn't supposed to be doing. I think because things aren't moving as fast as he would like them to, he got emotional and put that tweet out, and to be honest with you, I don't know where he's at right now mentally or what he's doing," Dana White said.
