Giga Chikadze picked up the biggest win of his MMA career as he scored a first-round TKO win over Cub Swanson on Saturday at UFC Vegas 25.
Chikadze went 4-0 in 2020 and was 5-0 in the UFC but had yet to fight a top-15 opponent. That all changed on Saturday as he fought a perennial contender in Swanson, and landed a beautiful liver kick that early in the first round that ended the fight.
After the win, Chikadze says he wanted another step up in the competition and called for a fight with Max Holloway or Calvin Kattar.
“I was in Georgia when Max fought Calvin. I was doing commentary for the fight, and I enjoyed this fight, and every time he was doing something nice I was like, ‘I want to fight him. I want to fight him,’” Chikadze told MMA Junkie at the UFC Vegas 25 post-fight press conference. “I feel like after this type of performance, I might get it – if not, then I might get (Kattar).”
Regardless of who he fights next, Chikadze proved he’s a legit featherweight contender with his performance on Saturday. He also cemented his Giga Kick as being something that can end a fight just like that.
“I’ve been in this moment many times with my kick,” Chikadze said. “My liver kick – my ‘Giga kick’ – this type of kick that you hurt somebody but they’re still not unconscious, they still feel everything and they can see it. It kind of blocks your body to do everything. I’ve been doing this in karate and kickboxing and I’ve had this type of experience every time. When I felt that, I realized I had already won the fight. I saw what the referee was doing and because he didn’t stop me I continued just to make him think that it’s over.”
It’s uncertain when Chikadze will return, but there is no doubt the Georgian wants to be active in 2021.
