Khamzat Chimaev is one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC, and fans have been eagerly awaiting his next fight. While there have been rumors about who he might face, nothing has been confirmed yet. However, Chimaev’s coach may have revealed his next opponent, and it’s not Kamaru Usman.
— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) July 9, 2023
Chimaev’s Next Opponent
According to Chimaev’s coach, his next opponent will be either Jared Cannonier or Marvin Vettori. Both fighters are ranked in the top five of the middleweight division, and either one would be a tough challenge for Chimaev.
Jared Cannonier is currently ranked number three in the UFC middleweight rankings. He has recently been heard saying he will fight anyone in the middleweight division as long as it gets him a title shot, and a win against Khamzat Chimaev could certainly do that.
It was leaked that a possible matchup with Jared Cannonier is looming after one his coaches posted a screenshot of him watching tape study on his next opponent but he blanked out the fighter on the computer screen. Thankfully for the MMA Twitter detectives, they went ahead and investigated who they were studying in the tape.
Twitter user @frontkicked might have found out Khamzat Chimaev’s next opponent pic.twitter.com/oK0sPd1unz
— Bloody Elbow (@BloodyElbow) July 10, 2023
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Jared Cannonier
A fight with former title challenger Jared Cannonier would be the right fight to make for Khamzat Chimaev’s rise into the top five of the middleweight division. If Chimaev were to be victorious it would be a given that he will leapfrog everyone else in the division to a title shot after Dricus Du Plessis gets first crack at the middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
This will not be an easy fight for Khamzat Chimaev by any stretch. After seeing what Cannonier was able to do to Marvin Vettori, he can replicate that same success against Chimaev. Also, Cannonier is naturally the larger man who used to fight as high as heavyweight meanwhile, Chimaev used to cut down to 170 pounds.
Whether or not Cannonier is the next opponent for Chimaev is yet to be confirmed but the fans are getting ancy and really want Chimaev to get back in there as soon as possible. No matter who it is, it will be a huge fight for the UFC and for Chimaev’s career toward being the middleweight champion.
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