UFC: Khamzat Chimaev Shares Shocking Illness Photos Before Kamaru Usman Fight

Khamzat Chimaev clears the air on his long hiatus.

Undefeated UFC middleweight Khamzat Chimaev recently tweeted and deleted photos of an alleged illness that he suffered before his UFC 295 bout against Kamaru Usman.

It is known that Chimaev suffered a torn hand ligament in the first round of the fight, but "Borz" was also keen to let fans know he was sick before competing.

In a compilation of photos shared on Chimaev's Twitter account, it can be seen that the Chechen fighter was blighted by something resembling an allergic attack; his skin is mottled and swollen and his eyes bloodshot:

Khamzat Chimaev posted and then deleted a picture of himself saying he was very sick pic.twitter.com/RDQnhmnOce

— MMA Mania (@mmamania) January 3, 2024

"I was very sick," Chimaev said in his caption. "My hand was injured, so I couldn't return right away, I want to tell all the [fans], I want to see myself in battle more than all of you. I love this job, I will do and prove that I am the best, as always we do, and I will be back soon to Insha'Allal training."

 "Borz" was absent for over a year after submitting Kevin Holland in two minutes at UFC 279. This was a stark contrast to the Chimaev who debuted in the UFC and won three bouts in 66 days - with less than five strikes absorbed.

"I'm coming back soon, for my belts," Chimaev said in a statement posted to Instagram on January 3.

An ideal return date for the UFC star would be UFC 300 on April 13, where fans have been ruminating over a potential matchup with Israel Adesanya or a rematch with Kamaru Usman.

Stick with MMA Knockout for more daily coverage of the UFC and MMA

Follow MMA Knockout on Twitter and Facebook.