Darren Till expects Khamzat Chimaev to steamroll Kamaru Usman.

After Paulo Costa wasn’t cleared to fight, Chimaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) will now face short-notice replacement Usman (20-3 MMA, 15-2 UFC) in a middleweight bout in Saturday’s UFC 294 co-main event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on pay-per-view at a special time of 2 p.m. ET following prelims on ESPN+.

Till is a good friend and training partner of Chimaev’s, but bias aside, he sees the undefeated Chimaev dominating the former UFC welterweight champion.

“I love Khamzat – God bless him,” Till told The Schmo. “Usman’s got balls, but I just think Khamzat is going to run over him – I do. As much as I’m his friend, I’m his biggest fan, Khamzat. I think he’s going to run over Usman. All respect to him. He is a GOAT, but yeah – I think Khamzat is going to ragdoll him. I do, sorry to say.”

Usman will look to rebound after back-to-back title losses to Leon Edwards. Chimaev will return for the first time since he scored a quick submission of Kevin Holland in September 2022. Chimaev vs. Holland was a 180-pound catchweight bout after Chimaev missed weight by nine pounds in his originally scheduled welterweight bout against Nate Diaz at UFC 279.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 294.