Well, that got awkward real quick. Khamzat Chimaev is not from Dagestan and has never been there. Despite the similarities between the beard-no-mustache combo, not everyone is from Dagestan.

Khamzat Chimaev is headlining UFC 3028 this Saturday in Newark, New Jersey as he puts his Middleweight Championship on the line against Sean Strickland in the main event. This week, Khamzat is doing media rounds for the show, and that’s when a very awkward encounter took place.

Khamzat Chimaev was asked what’s the secret behind training in Dagestan. But, here’s the catch, he’s never even been there. Chimaev responded with ”I don’t know, ask Islam. I’m not from Dagestan. I’m from Chechnya.” The reported followed up with “You’ve never trained there?” To which Khamzat replied “No.” Before awkwardly looking down.

https://x.com/MMAFullMount/status/2052018020285870155/video/1?s=46

This moment immediate had fans in a stir online. Hopefully next time The reporter can do is due-diligence.

Khamzat Chimaev will be live this Saturday headlining UFC 328. While on his media run, he noted he wants to taste Sean’s “meat”. You can read about that here.