Islam Makhachev’s coach comments on Khamzat Chimaev’s UFC 319 controversial strategy

Chimaev violently submitted Robert Whittaker in October 2024, earning a title shot and living up to the MMA community’s expectations for in-Octagon violence. However, against DDP, he chose a different strategy.

‘Borz’ adopted a more patient approach at UFC 319, which left many fans frustrated.

That reaction has not gone down well with Javier Mendez, Islam Makhachev’s longtime coach and former trainer of Khabib Nurmagomedov.

“He did what he wanted to do. He ragdolled him. The game plan [was] to take DDP down. That’s what I would have said. I would have told him exactly what he did. That is exactly what I would have had him do.”

“Why? This is your one big opportunity to win the biggest prize. You can be the biggest guy. For a long time, we haven’t had one this big.”

On The Javier & Mo Show, Mendez also spoke about how rare it is for fighters to get another chance at gold if they fall short the first time.

“This guy could be really big, so why risk it? I would tell him, ‘Just take him down. And if he gets back up, take him down again.’

“Sometimes people say, ‘Oh, it’s boring.’ Well, okay, whose fault is it that it’s boring? If the person can’t stop you from taking him down and he wants to stand, it’s your fault! Stand up! If not, learn your game.”

Khamzat Chimaev’s UFC 319 gameplan backed by Demetrious Johnson

Chimaev also has the flyweight legend Demetrious Johnson in his corner. The former champion, like Mendez did, defended the Chechen Wolf’s style during a live reaction stream of the event, telling viewers who complained about wrestling to just stop watching the sport.

“If you guys don’t wanna watch grappling and wrestling and jiu-jitsu – don’t watch the UFC.

“You guys are complaining about something that is a very easy problem to fix. For example, let’s say Khamzat is about to fight again, you don’t wanna watch his style. All you’ve gotta do is go like this: you see this button right here, it’s called off button,” the ‘Mighty Mouse’ said.

“You don’t have to see Khamzat wrestle. It’s a very simple problem to fix guys. You guys are making it a bigger deal than it is.”