Khamzat Chimaev actually had to go until the second period to get a victory but the result was still the same as the former UFC champion dominated Gilbert Burns in the RAF 13 co-main event.
While he did give up a couple of takedowns, Chimaev never slowed down and he kept racking up the points until the score got to 15-4, which ended the match as the Chechen mauler moved to 3-0 in RAF. Now Chimaev is looking to add some gold to his resume.
“Of course, why not? He has the belt,” Chimaev said about facing RAF crossover champion Colby Covington next.
A quick double-leg takedown attempt from Chimaev pushed Burns out of bounds to secure an easy point. Chimaev wasted no time powering through a slick four-point takedown to go up 5-0 but Burns wasn’t going away easy.
Burns actually exploded forward with a two-point takedown of his own, which only seemed to fire up Chimaev even more.
Chimaev exploded forward with another takedown to go up 11-2 as the first period came to a close. To Burns’ credit, he pushed Chimaev to a second period, which is something no past opponent has been able to accomplish in RAF
As the second period got underway, Burns grabbed onto Chimaev for another two-point takedown as he refused to go away in the high scoring match. A moment later, Chimaev grabbed onto a double-leg takedown and Burns crashed to the canvas for the four-point move, which ultimately ended the match.
Burns made a good showing for himself and he deserves a chance to come back to RAF again while Chimaev moves to 3-0 in RAF.
Chimaev has been nothing but dominant since arriving in RAF but he would definitely face his toughest challenge going against Covington if that match comes together in the near future.
