Everyone seems to be training in Phuket at the moment. From UFC stars to ring girls to the children of dictators mixed martial arts enthusiasts are flocking to Thailand.
But while Louise McKee surely won’t be the last ring girl to come and train in Phuket and Khamzat Chimaev is just one of the UFC stars here right now Ali Kadyrov looks likely to be the only dictator’s son. His father has faced numerous sanctions for his brutal reign in Chechnya and his support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
But that hasn’t stopped his son from living his MMA dreams. He recently made his MMA debut at ACA 150 winning a fight which was denounced as being ‘fixed’. He is now training alongside Chimaev at Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket:
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Human rights
Chimaev was born in Chechnya and happily poses for photos with Ramzan Kadyrov and his sons at every available opportunity. The Chechen dictator has been accused of massive human rights abuses, including extrajudicial killings, torture, kidnapping, and the persecution of homosexuals and faces a laundry list of sanctions.
Kadyrov’s tainted international reputation does not seem to bother Chimaev at all. The Chechen leader hosted a lavish wedding for the UFC star last year and in return he appears to be helping to train the dictator’s son.
It is not clear what will be next for Chimaev. He came in well over the welterweight limit ahead of his last UFC fight and there is speculation he will be moving up to middleweight next.
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Rising star
Chimaev has established himself as one of the fastest rising stars on the UFC roster. He is undefeated and has won six fights out of six for the promotion.
Missing weight by 10lbs for his last fight is the closest thing to a blotch on Chimaev’s record, unless you count his association with sanctioned dictators. He could be in contention for a shot at either the UFC welterweight or middleweight title.
As for Ali Kadyrov you wouldn’t bet against him putting together a 12 fight winning streak of his own, just as long as his father is promoting the events and hand picking the opponents!
