Former UFC double champ questions Khamzat vs. Diaz: "What's the point?"

UFC commentator and former double champion Daniel Cormier doesn’t see any point in the fight between Khamzat Chimaev and Nate Diaz at UFC 279.

UFC 279 will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on September 10. The event has been criticised for not having any big names on the card except for in the headlining bout, where Khamzat takes on the Stockton native Diaz.

“Borz” is ranked third in the welterweight division, while Diaz isn’t ranked whatsoever, which has led to further accusations of the headliner being a mismatch. UFC president Dana White dismisses the narrative ahead of the fight as “crazy”, but former champion Cormier is among those who believe that the fight shouldn’t even have been booked to begin with. According to Cormier, a win over Diaz wouldn’t do much to further Khamzat’s career, especially since the huge upset at UFC 278 where Leon Edwards won the welterweight belt from Kamaru Usman with a spectacular knockout in the final round of the fight.

“I think last weekend he didn’t understand that he was the biggest loser in the Usman vs. Leon situation because he was in line, Cormier said of Khamzat on his YouTube channel. All he had to do was get past Diaz. All he had to do, get past Diaz, you fight for the championship, but with Leon Edwards winning now, now we got a trilogy, and rightfully so.

“That leads to the question: what is this fight for? I feel like for Diaz, this fight is for legacy. I feel like for Chimaev, this is just another scalp on his resume because I don’t know if this win necessarily puts him closer than he already is to a championship fight. And, because of the result last weekend, he’ll need one more. I just wonder who that one more is going to come against. If he beats Diaz, does he get (Colby) Covington next?”

“Chaos” Covington is ranked second in the division, and has put on great performances against the former champion Usman. If Khamzat manages to beat Diaz and follow it up with another victory over Covington, he would most likely be guaranteed a title shot. However, depending on how his fight at UFC 279 plays out, Khamzat could potentially get the opportunity to face the winner of the trilogy between Usman and Edwards immediately.