“Man that was crazy!” – Jalin Turner on training with Khamzat Chimaev ahead of UFC 290

Jalin Turner recently opened up about his experience training with Khamzat Chimaev earlier this year and described what sparring with the grappling phenom was like. ‘The Tarantula’ is set to face Dan Hooker in an exciting lightweight contest at UFC 290 this weekend. 

The 28-year-old was initially booked to fight Hooker at UFC 285, but an injury forced ‘The Hangman’ out and their bout was rescheduled. Given that Turner came up short in his last outing against Mateusz Gamrot, ‘The Tarantula’ has left no stone unturned to sharpen his fangs against Dan Hooker. This includes training with ‘Borz’. 

At a recent UFC 290 media presser, Jalin Turner was asked about the time he spent training with the undefeated welterweight phenom Khamzat Chimaev in Dubai. While stories about the Chechen-born Swede’s cardio and intensity giving heavyweights trouble are quite widespread, Turner verified many of those tales and said:

“Man, that was crazy… Khamzat is legit… He’s a strong fighter, great grappling, good striking too. Man, he’s dope… It was intense. I wish I was up a weight class so I could have endured a lot more… I haven’t been pushed or tested like that in the gym for years. I didn’t even think anybody could do that to me at the point I’m at. But he did.”

Jalin Turner opens up about his recent altercation with internet prankster

Jalin Turner recently made headlines after a video of him reacting violently to an internet prankster who tried to joke around with the UFC lightweight fighter. While their altercation turned physical, the attention-seeking influencer was ultimately spared a severe beat down at the hands of a professional MMA fighter. 

Popular MMA-based Twitter handle @BenTheBaneDavis posted a video of the scuffle, which clearly showed the prankster creeping up behind Turner on an escalator. He then tried to intimidate the 28-year-old pretending to speak into a phone and ended with Turner’s hand wrapped around his throat. After the UFC lightweight’s crew dealt with the matter, the prankster can be seen running away after one last rile-up attempt. 

In the same UFC 290 media day presser, Jalin Turner was asked to comment on the viral incident and explain what went down during the altercation. He stated:

“It went exactly how it was supposed to go. He said something, and I grabbed him. He was lucky it was fight week, or I probably would have thrown some hands. But it’s okay.”

Jalin Turner will make his next walk down to the octagon against Dan Hooker this weekend. ‘The Tarantula’ is coming off a split decision loss against Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 285, whereas Dan Hooker last beat Claudio Puelles via second-round TKO to break a two-fight losing skid.