Robert Whittaker recently gave due credit to former foe Khamzat Chimaev’s wrestling.
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Whittaker faced Chimaev in potential middleweight title eliminator at UFC 308 on Oct. 26. Chimaev wasted no time in taking Whittaker down before sinking in a face crank that injured the former champion’s jaw, forcing a stoppage in the opening frame.Whittaker was immensely impressed by Chimaev’s takedowns. While “Bobby Knuckles” felt comfortable for a while on the feet, there was no getting away once Chimaev committed to the takedown. Despite having worked on his wrestling a lot in training camp, Whittaker couldn’t find anyone to replicate the Chechen-born Swede. Whittaker further noted that it isn’t Chimaev’s strength, but his chain wrestling that is most difficult to defend.
“I felt real comfortable standing with him,’ Whittaker recently said on the MMA Arcade podcast. “Then, the dude drops like a millimeter — how do you stop that takedown?... We did a lot …