“Tomorrow night! I am gonna smash your boy guys!”, this legendary quote has been immortalized in the MMA landscape and has very well-established Dagestan as the perennial turf for world-class grapplers. However, their fabled rivals are not far behind. Led by the relentless power of middleweight juggernaut Khamzat Chimaev, the land of Chechnya has showcased its own form of dominance in the UFC. But how does Chimaev’s grappling prowess fare against the legendary Khabib Nurmagomedov? Well, if that question bothers you, we have an answer to that!

No one in their right mind thought that Chimaev’s ground skills would be compared to those of ‘The Eagle’. However, the Dagestani’s former coach Javier Mendez has something else to say. The AKA head coach spoke about Chimaev on the Red Corner MMA podcast, putting him on the same level as his protege. “I think they’re at the same level,” Mendez explained, “but they’re different. They’re not the same fighters; they’re just different, like Khabib and Islam. They’re on the same level, but they each bring something unique. Khamzat is different—he’s not Islam, he’s not Khabib; he’s Khamzat. So, I would rate his ground skills as A+. A+ for Islam, A+ for Khabib, but they’re all distinct. In my book, they’re all A+.”

This praise from Team Khabib will undoubtedly serve as a boost for Khamzat Chimaev, despite his longstanding strained relationship with Nurmagomedov. Mendez may put them on the same level, but Joe Rogan thinks differently and has a different outlook on the Chechen prospect’s potential.

Can Khamzat Chimaev surpass surpass Khabib Nurmagomedov?

Well, yes, if we consider the ultimate voice of the UFC, commentator Joe Rogan, whose decades of experience in the world’s largest fight promotion have given him insights comparable to those of an analyst. Rogan was left stunned by Khamzat Chimaev’s performance last week in the Abu Dhabi showdown, which led him to believe that Chimaev’s wrestling abilities may have surpassed those of the emphatic Khabib Nurmagomedov.

During the fight, Chimaev executed a life-choking face crank similar to the one Nurmagomedov employed against Conor McGregor at UFC 229. However, ‘Borz’ did it in the first round before Robert Whittaker could inflict any significant damage. Impressed by Chimaev’s stunning performance, Rogan didn’t shy away from expressing his appreciation in episode #2220 of ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ while entertaining his guests Francis Foster and Konstantin Kisin.

Rogan opened up with a shocking revelation, stating, “Maybe even more intense, maybe even more dominant [comparing Chimaev’s ability to Nurmagomedov]. To do that to Whittaker, a guy who’s a world champion—like even the Conor [McGregor] fight, it took a while before [Khabib] overwhelmed him. This was just an overwhelming victory. Khamzat just charged in, dove in, got him down, and mauled him. Mauled him until he broke his face.”

What are your thoughts on Javier Mendez’s remarks? Do you think Khamzat Chimaev has reached the same level of prominence as Khabib Nurmagomedov did during his peak in the lightweight division before his retirement? Drop your opinion below.