The noted UFC star, Khamzat Chimaev, has dominated almost all of his opponents since his UFC debut. Although his last fight against the former UFC welterweight king Kamaru Usman presented a few challenges, ‘Borz’ eventually managed to come out victorious. A look at his time in the UFC will reveal that he has taken to the octagon seven times and holds an undefeated record to date. Chimaev’s reckless fighting style has also made him a fan favorite. Many of them may also consider him as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the current UFC roster.
Well, a look at the current official athlete rankings will reveal that Chimaev now appears on the list as a middleweight. After a victory against ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ in his previous outing, ‘Borz’ currently holds the #9 spot in the UFC’s middleweight rankings.
The UFC’s top pound-for-pound fighters list also went through some changes recently. Quite apparently, Chimaev’s fans would’ve loved to see him enter the list as well. But the current top pound-for-pound fighters list will reveal that Chimaev hasn’t earned himself a spot in it yet. Currently, the noted UFC lightweight champ, Islam Makhachev holds the #1 spot on the list. While, it ends with the former UFC light heavyweight champ, Jiri Prochazka, on #15. But, Chimaev is nowhere to be found on it.
However, most fans may opine that it is Chimaev’s move to middleweight, which has restricted his entry into the top 15 of the UFC’s top pound-for-pound fighters list. The authorities may be looking to test Chimaev’s prowess as a middleweight a bit more before granting him an entry into the list.
Who is Khamzat Chimaev fighting next?
The current picture of the UFC middleweight division says that the authorities have already scheduled the next title fight for UFC 297. But the noted former UFC champ-champ, Daniel Cormier, gave out a lot about the UFC’s future plans for the middleweight division. His words while interviewing Chimaev inside the octagon at UFC 294 revealed that Dana White and Co. wanted to provide the next UFC middleweight title shot to the winner of the Usman vs Chimaev fight.
Most fans may feel confident about ‘Borz’ getting the next shot at the middleweight gold after Cormier’s words. But there’s no guarantee of it till things get official. The winner of the upcoming UFC 297 middleweight title fight between Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis may have his eyes fixed on someone else as well. In such a situation, the UFC may decide to book the champion against the rival of his choice, sidelining Chimaev from the picture.
With that said, it would be interesting to see whether Chimaev gets a title shot in his next match or not. MMA fans will get answers to their questions as the time passes.
