Every long-term MMA fan knows to be wary of hype. History has shown us that for every fighter who lives up to their early hype—stars like Conor McGregor and Israel Adesanya are good examples—there are dozens who don't, such as Erick Silva, Sage Northcutt, Paige VanZant and Houston Alexander.
Yet heading into 2022, there is one fighter who seems to have even the most cynical of fans and pundits drinking the Kool-Aid: Khamzat Chimaev (10-0).
Chimaev, 27, made his UFC debut in July 2020, defeating John Phillips by second-round submission at middleweight. The Chechnya-born Swede returned to the Octagon 10 days later, defeating Rhys McKee by first-round TKO in a short-notice welterweight fight.