Edgar Chairez refuses to overlook Tim Elliott at Noche UFC 4
The Mexican flyweight has dismissed suggestions that his veteran opponent will be an easy fight.
Edgar Chairez has a big challenge ahead of him. At least, that is how the Mexican flyweight is looking at his next opponent. On Saturday, "Puro Chicali" will step inside the Octagon to face Tim Elliott at Noche UFC 4 in Glendale, Arizona. With their matchup around the corner, Chairez has rejected comments that this will be an easy bout, saying that, in fact, this could be one of the toughest fights of his career.
Edgar Chairez Knows Tim Elliott is a Tough Opponent
At 39 years old, Elliott has been competing in the UFC for more than a decade. Throughout his career, the veteran has faced some of the division's top contenders and also challenged Demetrious Johnson for the flyweight title in 2016. Needless to say, experience is not something that Elliott lacks.
However, Chairez has received some comments lately suggesting that he has an easy fight ahead. Although the Mexican fighter acknowledges that Elliott doesn't have the same prestige as some of the division's top contenders, he disagrees with this assessment and believes he will be in for a tough challenge on Saturday.
"He's a good name, but he's not a (Lone'er) Kavanagh, (Brandon) Royval, (Manel) Kape," Chairez told Hablemos MMA. "Tim Elliott has been able to maintain in the UFC; he's a veteran, and he's always there. I've gotten a lot of comments asking why I took the fight and all that and saying that this is an easy fight. This is not an easy fight. It's actually a very tough fight, and might be the most difficult fight I've ever had. I've treated this seriously. I'm trusting the process, and whatever life has for me, that's what will happen. But no, it's not an easy fight at all."
Chairez has already faced Joshua Van and Tatsuro Taira, with both fighters later challenging for the UFC flyweight title. Those two bouts remain the only losses of Chairez's UFC career. Despite his experience against top-level competition, the Mexican fighter believes Elliott could present the toughest challenge he has faced.
Edgar Chairez Sees Less Prestige in Tim Elliott Fight
While Chairez does not consider Elliott an easy opponent, he admits that the matchup does not carry the same prestige as some of the other names he could have faced. Brandon Royval, for example, would be a similarly difficult challenge in Chairez's eyes, but the former title challenger currently sits near the top of the division's rankings. Still, Chairez knows that Elliott's experience makes him a dangerous opponent.
"It would actually be better to fight Royval, who's almost just as hard a fight, than Tim Elliott. The problem is that Royval is up there, ranked No. 1 or 2. But yeah, it's a very hard fight and doesn't carry the same prestige as others. He's a veteran. Yes, he might be in his 40's, but he's tricky. Anything can happen."
Chairez enters the fight with plenty of momentum, riding a three-fight winning streak after defeating Bruno Silva by first-round submission in his last appearance. Elliott, meanwhile, will look to return to the win column after suffering a unanimous decision loss to Steve Erceg in May.
