“I’d rather get knocked out [or] something. I’m not going to quit on the stool. I can’t quit on my team like that. We work so hard. I think my dad would disown me, too, if I did that, to be honest. He’s different. I don’t know, I can’t do that. I don’t want my kids to see that. We follow through no matter what. I signed up to go in there. I signed up to be in that position, to do what I do, to put on a show for the fans, to give a good name to the promotion, to all the guys that gave me the opportunity. - on Reinier de Ridder "quitting on the stool" at UFC Vancouver”

“Chimaev, you want a good grappler? You want someone that's young and hungry? Come get it, baby. - after UFC win over de Ridder.”

“For me, I have enough friends in this division. I've got that—I won't fight unless they say my name. If they see my name, then we're gonna get it. And now I know that from the very beginning. And for [Reinier], off like anyone—so without being sad—yeah, I'm not your friend, don't wanna be your friend. I don't disrespect you; if you just respect me, then we'll have no problem. I'll help you; I don't want your help from me, in a kind of way. I look at it like, I know eventually we're gonna fight 'cause I've been asking for him since he came to the UFC. So, before it was even training there... and then, to be honest, like, I got asked—for every, like, middleweight—they wanted [to come to] our gym. I always ask, "Hey, you cool with it?" Like, even [Nassourdine] Imavov came [to] the gym [and] asked me before we were supposed to even fight. I was like, "Yeah, for sure—be cool, have a new look." Then we fought; he stayed where you were. That, and after... "Here's a—have no mind if [I] come..." So I was like, "Alright"-explain's why he has no interest in training with de Ridder”

“I think he's got a lot of work to do in our division first. It's not like he's a huge 85'er that's cutting a lot like Alex was to get to 85 to where it's like, 'Alright, I became a champion, I defended once, let's just go up.' It's weird, but I don't think that's in his future right now-about Khamzat Chimaev calling out Alex Pereira for champ vs. champ super fight.”