The last we saw Khamzat Chimaev he was missing weight by 9 lbs in a main event spot against Nate Diaz. He ruined what might have catapulted him into title contention in the biggest fight of his career at UFC 279.
Since he missed weight, he took on Kevin Holland that same night in a catchweight bout where he absolutely steamrolled him and got the first-round finish. Since that egregious weight miss, it was evident that Chimaev’s time in the welterweight division was pretty much done.
You can’t miss weight by as much as Chimaev did and ruin a big main event and think you will be able to fight in that weight class ever again. Dana White has already said that Chimaev’s next fight will be at middleweight.
Dana White: Khamzat Chimaev’s next bout will be middleweight, ‘should be fighting top-3 guys’ https://t.co/xduPXIR1v9 pic.twitter.com/dbspTzFzR5
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) March 19, 2023
He now will be fighting the elite of the elite in middleweight division where one potential win could catapult him into title contention.
Who Should Khamzat Chimaev Fight at Middleweight?
Dana White announced that Chimaev will now be fighting at middleweight, but he also will be fighting the cream of the crop. He is giving him a top-3 fight within the division right away, and if he is able to get through this fight with a dominant win it should throw him right into the title mix. Let’s take a look at his potential opponents for Chimaev’s next middleweight bout.
Jared Cannonier
Jared Cannonier is currently sitting at #3 in the middleweight rankings. His most recent win was a closely contested fight against Sean Strickland. It was a very controversial win as many did have Strickland being victorious in the end.
This honestly wouldn’t be the most appealing fight to the fans as most would think Chimaev should and will run right through him. This would be the best-case scenario for Chimaev to get a title shot as he has him about covered everywhere, even though Cannonier is dangerous this would be a very tall task for him.
Robert Whittaker
This is the fight that all the fans want to see. Since White is talking about an immediate top-3 fight Chimaev this the last logical choice since Israel Adesanya is fighting for the title against Alex Pereira at UFC 287.
This is the fight that would really show us if Chimaev is ready to fight for the title or not. This will also give Whittaker to get back into the title picture with a win over the surging Chimaev who many think is the next champion at either welterweight or middleweight.
It is rumored that Chimaev will take the next step in his career towards a title shot in Dubai in October, stay tuned to see who will be his opponent.
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