Khamzat Chimaev is gearing up for his hardest check as he continues climbing towards the highest of the middleweight division.
On Saturday, June 22, ‘Borz’ will return to the Octagon as a part of a loaded UFC Saudi Arabia card from Kingdom Area in Riyadh. Headlining the historic night time of fights can be a 185-pound conflict between undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev and former middleweight titleholder Robert Whittaker, the winner seemingly nudging themselves into place for a shot on the division’s prime prize.
“Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev in Saudi Arabia, that one is gonna be f*cking wild,” longtime UFC colour commentator Joe Rogan mentioned on his standard podcast. “That’s a wild one. That may be a wild combat. Whittaker vs. Khamzat is legit. That’s an actual combat, that’s an actual combat for Khamzat as a result of Whittaker is an enormous dude. Stable, beefy 185 [pounds], former champion. Each guys began at 170 but it surely was too exhausting to make it to 170” (h/t MMA Mania).
Whereas ‘The Reaper’ has fortunately referred to as the middleweight division house for the final decade, Chimaev was primarily compelled to make the transfer from 170 to 185 after an enormous mishap on the dimensions forward of his scheduled scrap with Nate Diaz at UFC 279.
Khamzat Chimaev’s Solely Middleweight Win Since 2020 got here in opposition to a short-notice Kamaru Usman
Since then, Chimaev has solely clocked one win within the weight class, besting former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman who moved up on brief discover to face ‘Borz’ at UFC 294 in October. Chimaev received the combat through a majority determination.
“That’s an actual 185’er versus [when] they gave [Chimaev] Kamaru Usman, and Kamaru didn’t have an opportunity to organize for that [fight],” Rogan continued. “He had 10 days. That’s not sufficient time. This can be a huge one. That is Robert Whittaker with loads of time to organize. A man who’s simply as legit as they get. He simply beat Paulo Costa. That’s an excellent combat. I like that.”
Whittaker is coming off an enormous win over the returning Paul Costa at UFC 298 in February. Winner of two of his final three, ‘The Reaper’ is 16-5 contained in the Octagon and at the moment sits within the No. 3 spot within the middleweight rankings — eight slots forward of Khamzat Chimaev.
