Dana White, ahead of the promotion’s first-ever event in Saudi Arabia, had promised to make it the “greatest Fight Night card of all time.” And everything was coming together for the UFC. Khamzat Chimaev, one of the biggest stars in the promotion, was set to headline the historic card opposite former champ Robert Whittaker in a fight with clear title implications.

However, ‘Borz’ apparently fell ‘violently ill’ around a week away from the bout, and had to pull out, and was replaced by Ikram Aliskerov. While images of him in the hospital were doing the rounds, the actual illness he is suffering from remains unknown. And Joe Rogan along with his friends Brendan Schaub and Bryan Callen, discussed the various theories surrounding the Chechen’s pullout from the fight.

Joe Rogan and co. discuss Khamzat Chimaev’s mystery illness

On the JRE Fight Companion show for the Saudi card yesterday, Brendan Schaub felt that Chimaev’s pull-out had yet again put the UFC in an awkward position. And ‘Bapa’ told Rogan and Callen that this must be frustrating for the promotion and might make them reconsider how they view him and put how much stock they put in Chimaev. “What do you do if you’re the UFC and you put all this stock in Khamzat? Eventually they should go ‘F***k it, we’ve gotta move on,” Schaub said.

To which Rogan asked: “So, did he get food poisoning? Is that what happened?” But Callen pointed out that “they backed off of that story” and felt that the food poisoning was “such a bad story.” Chimaev’s manager, Majdi Shammas, had said after the former’s withdrawal from the Saudi card that he was suffering from a serious case of food poisoning, which had landed him in the hospital. Curiously, a few days later, Chimaev’s teammate and friend Tam Khan contradicted the manager and said that the “fake rumours” about Chimaev pulling out because of food poisoning was “absolutely bull***t.”

Schaub chimed in with undefeated middleweight and Chimaev rival Bo Nickal’s theory. Nickal had claimed that the reason the Emirati citizen’s withdrew was because he was partying too hard, pointing out that “Bo alluded to the fact that he’s always partying like a King out there all the time.”

Joe Rogan agreed wholeheartedly with this assessment, pointing out that Chimaev was a big deal in the UAE, where he currently lives and trains. Rogan observed that Chimaev was friends with the royals and government officials there, and must be well taken care of financially. One indication that he is living the good life is the $1 million Hublot Big Bang Tourbillion Croco watch, likely to be a gift from a generous (and very rich) admirer, he was seen sporting at the UFC 294 pre-fight press conference.

In fact, the undefeated middleweight has recently taken UAE citizenship because of his closeness to the rulers there. This, of course, lends credence to the partying allegations, but nothing could be said for certain.

“That Khamzat is? Yeah, interesting, well Khamzat’s got a lot of bread bro. Got a lot of money. Yeah, he’s hanging out with people who have a lot of money,” Rogan added. In addition to the patronage of the Emirati royals, Chimaev is also friends with the sons of the most powerful man in his native Chechnya: Ramzan Kadyrov, Head of the Chechen Republic. Which is another avenue that Chimaev could be taken care of financially.

And while the 30-year-old may have been forced to pull out of his Fight Night clash against Whittaker, ‘Borz’ is determined to finish the unfinished business between them shortly.

Chimaev vows to fight ‘The Reaper’ after the latter’s victory

Robert Whittaker, of course, defeated Chimaev’s replacement, Ikram Aliskerov, in spectacular fashion. The former champion caught the Dagestani with a fantastic left, rocking him hard, and unloaded on the latter with devastating combinations, before the referee stopped the bout. This first-round KO/TKO victory has made the Kiwi a strong candidate for a title shot in his next fight.

However, the ethnic Chechen still wants to fight Whittaker and took to Instagram to give ‘The Reaper’ a brief message, congratulating him on the victory and vowing they will meet in the octagon one day. “Congrats @robwhittakermma we are not done yet!”  In addition, the Emirati gave words of encouragement to Aliskerov (who took the fight on short notice), urging him to not get discouraged by the loss. “@askramaliskerov I wish you a speedy recovery. Keep your head up, my brother.” 

What are your thoughts on Chimaev’s journey in the UFC ahead? Let us know in the comments.