UFC fans are convinced that the upcoming fight between Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev may already be over after the pair met for the first time.
In the early hours of Sunday morning, UFC middleweight champion Du Plessis will defend his title against the highly-rated and popular Chimaev at the United Center In Chicago, Illinois.
Both fighters are coming off dominant wins over former champions, with the winner of Sunday's bout expected by many to reign as champion for the foreseeable future.
Pair the champion's unpredictable fighting style and the challenger's suffocating wrestling and grappling and you have what is perhaps the most anticipated fight in the sport right now,.
Advert
However, fans are worried that the result of Sunday's main event may have already been decided after seeing how the pair reacted when they saw each other for the first time this week.
Ahead of the fight on Sunday, Chimaev bumped into his opponent while out in Chicago and decided to immediately approach the champion and greet him.
All things considered, the meeting appeared to be relatively friendly, with the two men shaking hands before having a brief conversation and parting ways.
Advert
But that didn't stop some fans from pointing out the clear size difference between Chimaev and the middleweight champion, leading to them claiming that it will be the deciding factor in the fight.
Reacting to the footage, one fan asked: "Wtf, is Chimaev that big or was it just the angle?”
Another joked: "Khamzat looks absolutely huge, it's like he ate his old self
While another pointed out: "Crazy that Khamzat ever made welterweight, he looks huge."
Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev are set to cut loads of weight for UFC 319
In order to make the 185lb (83.9kg) championship limit ahead of the official weigh-in on Friday, both Du Plessis and Chimaev will have to cut a serious amount of weight.
Advert
Speaking in an interview with Chicago Sports Network, the Du Plessis admitted that typically walks around at 104kg and still has a way to go before he reaches the limit.
He said: “I’m still quite a fair bit away from 185lb,” the South African admitted.
“But I do walk around at around 225lb to 230lb. That’s my walk-around weight out of camp, of course."
Meanwhile, reports have claimed that Chimaev has weighs as much as 235lb (107kg) outside of camp, despite the fact that he used to make the 171lb (77.5kg) welterweight limit.
Ben McCrum