Khamzat Chimaev

About

Khamzat Khizarovich Chimaev (born 1 May 1994) is a Russian-Emirati professional mixed martial artist and freestyle wrestler. He currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the former UFC Middleweight Champion. As of 12 May 2026, he is #1 in the Meta UFC middleweight rankings, and as of 23 June 2026, he is #12 in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings.
In freestyle wrestling, Chimaev is a three-time Swedish national champion. He is currently signed to the Cruiserweight division of Real American Freestyle (RAF).

Chimaev was born on 1 May 1994 in Gvardeyskoye, Chechen Republic, Russia to a poor and conservative Muslim Chechen family. He started wrestling at the age of five in the village of Gvardeyskoye. It has been reported he won a bronze medal at the Russian National Championships in the junior level. In 2013, when he was 18, he emigrated to Sweden with his mother, joining his older brother.

After moving to Sweden, Chimaev wrestled at multiple clubs, including BK Athén. Considered one of the best freestyle wrestlers in the country, Chimaev won a gold medal…