25-04-2025
UFC on ESPN 66: How Giga Chikadze is looking at unranked David Onama as an investment
UFC on ESPN 66: How Giga Chikadze is looking at unranked David Onama as an investment
Giga Chikadze hopes beating David Onama at UFC on ESPN 66 will lead to bigger things.
Chikadze (15-4 MMA, 8-2 UFC) takes on Onama (13-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) on Saturday's main card (ESPN2, ESPN+) at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.
Chikadze is coming off a unanimous decision loss to top 10 ranked Arnold Allen at UFC 304 last July. He now draws a featherweight on the rise, but expects the UFC to reward him with a win.
"I feel like that's an investment for me," Chikadze said during Wednesday's UFC on ESPN 66 media day. "Fight somebody who's not ranked, so I'm going to expect something after, something big from the UFC. I do something for them, they do something for me. I'm here to become a champion. That's the only reason I'm in the UFC. I'm not here just to get paid."
Onama has won five of his past six, with three of those wins coming by finish. While Chikadze was reluctant to offer too much praise, he acknowledged his opponent's dangerous style.
"As an opponent, if you ask me, I'm not going to say nice things," Chikadze said. "In general, yeah he's a great fighter. He has some knockout skills. I look at him as a good athlete and good, competitive fighter. That's all I can say at the moment. I can speak about him highly after the fight."
