With an Octagon tenure spanning a series of two weight divisions so far, unbeaten middleweight contender, Khamzat Chimaev appears to have sights set on rekindling the AllStars MMA rivalry with heavyweight champion, Jon Jones – claiming a fight with the Endicott native may be on the horizon for him.
Chimaev, the current number nine ranked middleweight contender, has been sidelined since he took home a close, debated majority decision win over former undisputed welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman in his Octagon comeback back in October at UFC 294.
Sidelined through hand surgery to address a ligament injury suffered in the opening round of his fight with former pound-for-pound number one, Usman, Chimaev claims he has been “guaranteed” a shot at middleweight gold next.
And ahead of UFC 297 this weekend in Canada, Chimaev claimed he was unaware that middleweight champion, Sean Strickland or incoming title chaser, Dricus du Plessis were “scared” of him – with both recently confirming their disinterest in fighting the Chechen-born finisher in the future.
Khamzat Chimaev weighs up Jon Jones showdown
Weighing up a potential weight class leap in search of a third victory in separate weight classes amid links to a showdown with light heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira – whom he predicted he would finish, Chimaev has now name-dropped former pound-for-pound number one, Jones – in the vein of seeking revenge for his training partner, Alexander Gustafsson.
“Depends [on] which weight class,” Khamzat Chimaev told Smile 2 Jannah. “He’s (Jon Jones) now a heavyweight. You’re asking me? For sure, I think I will win. That’s a hard fight for everyone. He fought two times with my training partner, Alexander Gustafsson – they had good fight.”
“So, I became a fighter with Alex, been training with him,” Khamzat Chimaev explained. “For sure I want to fight with [Jones] so it will be a big history if we fight. Since Alex gave him the best fight in history, now maybe it’s my time to fight him, as well.”
Would you watch Jon Jones fight Khamzat Chimaev in the future?