What is Khamzat Chimaev’s nationality? Examining the UFC fighter’s allegiance

Khamzat Chimaev will now represent a new country in the UFC after breaking his allegiance with his former home country, Sweden. Chimaev is set to compete at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi against Paulo Costa in October.

This fight marks Khamzat’s return to middleweight, a weight class he will stick with in the future. In addition to moving up to a higher weight class, he faces another significant challenge: emigrating to the United Arab Emirates to represent the UAE in UFC 294.

Khamzat to represent UAE starting UFC 294

Khamzat’s manager, Majdi Shammas, has revealed that Chimaev left Sweden, where he previously lived and trained, and has emigrated to the United Arab Emirates.

“He has emigrated, he is no longer Swedish,” Shammas told Swedish outlet SVT Sports. When asked why, the manager didn’t elaborate,rather simply said, “He wanted to emigrate.”

In the year 2023, there have been multiple incidents of Quran burning in Sweden, and the Swedish government’s allowance of such actions is speculated as the reason for Borz’s departure from the country. In a new video posted on Chimaev’s YouTube channel, the middleweight fighter shared footage of his training in Dubai, without his Allstars Training Center coach, Andreas Michael. This time, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion Alan “Finfou” do Nascimento is listed as his coach, although there is no definitive proof of whether Borz has officially changed teams.

Chimaev’s nationality explained

The 29-year-old, originally born in Chechnya, Russia, moved to Sweden at the age of 18, alongside his mother and older brother. He began training at the Allstars gym in Stockholm in 2017 and went on to represent Sweden during his UFC bouts. However, Borz has now made the decision to represent the United Arab Emirates. In an interview with ESPNMMA, Khamzat Chimaev revealed that his choice to move to Sweden was influenced by his brother, who was living in Sweden at the time.

As of now, Khamzat Chimaev will be representing his new country, The UAE starting UFC 294 against Costa. Share your thoughts on who do you think will emerge victor between Khamzat and Paulo?