Where Does Khamzat Chimaev Train? Who Is His Coach After Leaving All Stars Training Centre?

Khamzat Chimaev has often struck fear in his opponents’ hearts with his superior grappling prowess and undefeated professional MMA record. Yes! The Chechen fighter has secured 13 impressive wins as a professional mixed martial artist, with absolutely no defeats. Be it Gilbert Burns, or Kamaru Usman, ‘Borz’ has always ensured that the fight fans stay entertained throughout the duration of his fights. No wonder he is considered to be one of the elites in the UFC.

To be elite, you have to train with the elite, or so they say. Coaches, teammates, and the environment in a combat sports gym are essential for any fighter’s development. Looking at how the Chechen Wolf has risen in the UFC, it’s no secret that he’s got a great team behind him. However, he has also changed teams like many other UFC fighters. Hence, let’s have a look at his new set of coaches and teammates.

All we know about Khamzat Chimaev’s new gym and teammates

Khamzat Chimaev initially trained at All Stars Training Centre from 2017 to 2023. It was his first MMA gym, which he joined when he came to Sweden at 19 years old. But then he moved to Akhmat Fight Club, which is based out of Grozny, a Russian city near the Sunzha River. The gym’s named after the first Chechen president, Akhmat Kadyrov, and its primary aim was to build boxing talents, but later, it started growing fresh homegrown MMA talents as well.

Khamzat Chimaev’s teammates from Akhmat Fight Club are pretty experienced as well. Although he’s one of the two fighters from that gym who competes in the UFC, alongside Magomed Ankalaev, one of his teammates, Abdul-Rakhman Dudaev, has competed in 42 MMA fights so far and won 33 of them. Some of his other talented teammates include Abubakar Vagaev and Chersi Dudaev, to name a few.

Interestingly, Chimaev isn’t the only one with the nickname ‘Borz’ in the Akhmat Fight Club. One of his teammates, Selim Agaev, also seems to have the same moniker. How cool is that, right?

Now, let’s take a look at his coaches. After all, they are the ones who molded Chimaev into the fighter that he is today.

Who are Khamzat Chimaev’s coaches?

For a long time, Khamzat Chimaev’s head coach was Andreas Michael, whom he trained with in Sweden. However, now, there’s been an overhaul in his camp. His new head coach from his current gym, Akhmat Fight Club, is Murad Bichuev. There aren’t many details on Chimaev’s head coach. But the popular belief is that he’s been associated with the Grozny-based gym for a long time.

Not too long ago, Chimaev fell violently ill and had to forfeit his bout against Robert Whittaker just a couple of days before the scheduled date. Later on, it was revealed that it happened just because of his excessive training. To manage that, ‘Borz’ included more resting time in his training regime. But that’s not everything that he did. He also sought the help of his former coach, Salim Selbievich.

Posting a picture with Selbievich on Instagram, the Chechen Wolf wrote, “My training camp was joined without fear of these words by the legendary trainer, honored coach of the USSR and Russia, Salim Selbievich Nutsalkhanov.” Chimaev continued to shower praise on the coach and looked forward to getting another win in his MMA record. He wrote, “Knowing what famous and legendary athletes and wrestlers Salim Selbievich trained, his presence in the team gives extra strength, motivation and, of course, additional input of new tricks into the wrestling direction. According to the will of the Almighty, we confidently go to the previous goal, creating reasons.”

On the other hand, Khamzat Chimaev also has a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu coach, Alan Nascimento. He’s been ‘Borz’ for a long time now, being a black belt in BJJ and a multiple-time world champion. Talking to the UFC regarding wrestling, Nascimento once said, “We already have the habit of working heavy in the wrestling department… If you fight a fellow wrestler, he can interpret your actions before it happens because he has the same habit. The fight gets a bit more difficult even for Chimaev to be able to use what he has the most confidence in… It’s hard to say there’s an easy path, but I don’t think there’s such thing as unbeatable human beings.”

So there’s no doubt that the undefeated middleweight star is getting the best training he possibly can. But very few people talk about the reason why he chose to leave All Stars Training Centre. Let’s explore that aspect of his past.

Why did Khamzat Chimaev leave the All Stars Training Center?

Well, Khamzat Chimaev has often been linked to controversies, from his connection with Ramzan Kadyrov of Chechnya to taking some questionable digs at division king Dricus du Plessis. However, in late 2022, it was his former gym got caught up in one controversy, but he wasn’t a part of it. The All Stars Training Centre apparently got blacklisted for engaging in local competitions by the Swedish MMA Federation, due to threats and disruptions. But that’s not the entire reason why Chimaev chose to leave that gym.

When Khamzat Chimaev made the move to the UAE, he had to leave the gym as well. His manager, Majdi Shammas, said, “He has immigrated. He is no longer Swedish. He wants to immigrate,” almost a year ago. Many believe that hopping between two nations might have been something he didn’t want to do. Some even believe that the UAE government paid him to represent them. But we don’t really have a clear answer.

Now, the Chechen Wolf is getting ready to make landfall against Whittaker, this time at UFC 308. With guidance from Selbievich and the support of his teammates, he will indeed try his best to claim a victory and extend his undefeated streak.

In a bid to get rid of the health complications, his old coach has completely changed the way he approaches training with a stern focus on recovery. But will that work next weekend at UFC 308? It remains to be seen.