Khamzat Chimaev downplays Paulo Borrachinha's challenge and hits back at Brazilian: 'This guy is poor'

Paulo borrachinha (right) and Khamzat Shimaev (left) face each other in the UFC 294. Photo: SUPER FIGHTS montage

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Khamzat Shimaev is not very interested in the challenges made by Paulo borrachinha. After defeating Roman Kopylov At UFC 318, the Brazilian accused the Chechen fighter of sending messages to Tamara Alves, his wife, and challenged him to settle their differences inside the octagon. The 'Wolf,' in turn, is suspicious of the Minas Gerais fighter's true motives.

In an interview with the 'Jaxxon Podcast', Khamzat Shimaev downplayed Paulo Costa's comments, stating that he does not feel intimidated by the Brazilian and suggesting that the challenger is only looking for financial gain.

"I don't care what Paulo Costa says. My bank account is much better than his. This guy is poor, that's why he's trying to challenge me and make money. I beat the guys who beat him," Chimaev said.

Although it has been challenged by Paulo borrachinha, Chimaev has more pressing matters to attend to. The Chechen faces Dricus Du Plessis in the main fight of UFC 319, next Saturday (16), in a duel valid for the middleweight division title (up to 83,9 kg).

Paulo Borrachinha exposes offensive message that Khamzat Chimaev allegedly sent to his wife

After defeating Roman Kopylov on points and challenge Chimaev in the UFC octagon, Borrachinha used his interview on Ariel Helwani's 'The MMA Hour' to expose alleged private messages sent by the Swede to his wife via Instagram.

According to Borrachinha, the Chechen fighter would have sent a controversial image involving Israel adesanya and made offensive insinuations about his masculinity.

"He sent a photo of the fight against Adesanya and wrote: 'Your man is not man enough. See, he likes black men. You should look for someone better,'" the Minas Gerais native told the journalist.

Screenshot of the DMs

(via @BorrachinhaMMA) pic.twitter.com/i8oCT05lCP

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) July 21, 2025

Borrachinha and Chimaev have a long-standing rivalry

Paulo borrachinha was injured before facing Khamzat Shimaev No. UFC 294. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram

The accusation quickly resonated. Chimaev previously countered the Brazilian's version with a post on X (formerly Twitter): "She wrote to me, my dear," he wrote, followed by laughing emojis.

During the post-event press conference, Borrachinha didn't let it slide, claiming that Chimaev was 'lying' about the source of the contact. The two had already scheduled a fight, but the Brazilian had to withdraw after injuring his elbow.

Now, Khamzat faces Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight belt, and Borrachinha showed interest in being there to observe his potential future rival closely.