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Arman Tsarukyan claims Khamzat Chimaev needs controlling during fight camp due to previous health issues

Originally posted on Bloody Elbow | By Jamie Theodosi | Last updated Aug 5, 2025 10:18 AM ET

Throughout his UFC tenure, Khamzat Chimaev has been one of the most unreliable stars in the promotion.

Later this month, Khamzat Chimaev will finally fight for UFC gold after years of what seemed like an inevitability, when he takes on Dricus Du Plessis in the UFC 319 main event.

Chimaev’s last outing came last October at UFC 308 when he crushed Robert Whittaker’s jaw in what was the biggest win of his career thus far, finally earning a shot at the title.

Although ‘Borz’s’ UFC career looks as though it has gone flawlessly because of his undefeated record, it has certainly come with its fair share of adversity.

Chimaev needs controlling in fight camp according to teammate

There was a period throughout 2020-2021 when the Chechen continuously ran into issue after issue, which at one point put his career in jeopardy and he prematurely announced his retirement from the sport.

Despite making his comeback shortly after, Chimaev continued to face health issues and at one point posted some grim images on his social media after being hospitalised by an infection of sorts.

After years of not being able to put his finger on what was causing his health complications, Chimaev made the bold decision to change his coaches, claiming that his previous coaches were training him to ‘exhaustion’.

And with that, ahead of his fight against ‘Stillknocks’, the majority of Chimaev’s fight camp has taken place from the rural mountains in Russia, where he has reunited with his old wrestling coach.

Someone who has been helping Chimaev prepare for the biggest fight of his career is UFC lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan, who has claimed Chimaev needs ‘controlling’ so that he doesn’t overtrain like before.

“He doesn’t reach his peak because he likes to train a lot, he needs to be stopped during training camp,” Tsarukyan began to explain in an interview with Kamil Gadzhiev.

“Khamzat needs a man beside him who controls him 24/7 and stops him so he doesn’t get overtrained,” he continued.

Khamzat Chimaev is taking better care of his time ahead of UFC 319

Ahead of his title fight in Chicago, Chimaev is putting a big price on his time. The middleweight star was allegedly invited to participate in a livestream with Dana White‘s friend, Adin Ross.

However, Chimaev’s manager demanded that ‘Borz’ was paid $700,000 which left Ross bewildered and it eventually didn’t come to fruition.

This article first appeared on Bloody Elbow and was syndicated with permission.

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