Caio Borralho believes Khamzat Chimaev will retire after UFC 319: “Some whispers about that”

UFC middleweight contender Caio Borralho believes Khamzat Chimaev will retire following UFC 319.

Chimaev is set to challenge Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight title in the main event of UFC 319 on August 16 in Chicago. Heading into the bout, Chimaev is a -188 favorite on FanDuel to become the new champ.

If Chimaev does beat Du Plessis to become the new champ, Borralho says he has heard ‘Borz’ will retire from the sport.

“I heard somewhere, some people saying that if he wins the belt, he’s gonna retire. I think so. There’s some little talks, some whispers about that,” Borralho said to MMAToday. “If he wins the belt, he retires. I’m not sure of that. I don’t know if I believe that or not, but it’s an option. There’s too much pressure on him. Health problems and a lot of pressure from his country. Maybe he retires, maybe not. He has a lot of money already. A lot of money — he’s good with money. He’ll already be champion, so why not retire? I would do the same.”

Khamzat Chimaev retiring right after he won the belt would be a bit of a surprise. However, he has dealt with health issues, and as Caio Borralho says, he is rich, so perhaps he doesn’t have the drive to keep on fighting after becoming the champ.

But, for any of that to happen, Chimaev will need to beat Du Plessis, which is easier said than done.

Caio Borralho expects to earn a title shot at UFC Paris

As for Caio Borralho, he is set to headline UFC Paris on Sept. 6 against Nassourdine Imavov in a No. 1 contender bout. The winner of that fight will likely face the winner of Du Plessis vs Chimaev.

Although Borralho is going into enemy territory, he has full confidence that he will beat Imavov, as he expects his pressure and power to be too much.

“I’m going to pressure this guy, he’s going to get tired, and I’m going to knock him out,” Borralho told Submission Radio. “That’s what I’m going to do. He’s going to be too emotional in this fight, and I’m going to knock him out with his own emotions.”

Borralho is currently ranked sixth at middleweight and is 17-1 and 1 NC as a pro.