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The Real American Freestyle (RAF) promotion's decision to organize a wrestling bout between Khamzat Chimaev and Dillon Danis has left many scratching their heads.
Chimaev, a former UFC middleweight title contender, is widely regarded as one of the most dominant grapplers in mixed martial arts. He is a three-time national freestyle wrestling gold medalist from Sweden and has recently considered a move to light heavyweight in his MMA career. Danis, on the other hand, is a former Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist with only three professional MMA fights, no wrestling accolades, and has competed at 175 lbs in MMA.
On paper, the matchup appears to be a significant mismatch in both size and skill. However, according to RAF co-founder Izzy Martinez, there's a logical rationale behind this seemingly audacious choice of opponents.
"Well, you know, Dillon Danis actually... you saw him wrestle Colby Covington, right?" Martinez explained to MMA Junkie Radio. "And then you saw Colby wrestle and beat Chris Weidman, right? So Danis was close to beating Colby, if you remember that match in RAF. I think a lot of people underestimate Dillon Danis just because he's so good at trash talk. But on behalf of RAF, I can say that working with Dillon Danis is a pleasure. Great guy. Always on time. Does everything right. Makes weight. It's truly a joy to work with him. I believe this was an opportunity for him to compete against a big name, and also for Khamzat to come here and face an opponent with whom he can get into a rhythm on the Real American Freestyle stage, and who generates a lot of interest. I mean, how many people don't want to see Dillon Danis get what's coming to him? And they want 'The Wolf' to do it. So, let's see it," he added.
The Chimaev vs. Danis encounter is the main event of the RAF 10 fight night, scheduled for Saturday at the Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis. The bout will be contested at cruiserweight and will be broadcast on FOX Nation.
This will mark Chimaev's debut on the RAF mat, while it will be Danis's second appearance, following his debut loss to Colby Covington in March.
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