Khamzat Chimaev is eyeing up a fight with newly crowned middleweight champion, Alex Pereira.
Last night at UFC 281, the MMA world was witness to a massive middleweight shakeup as Pereira would knockout long-reigning champion, Israel Adesanya.
Pereira would land a left hook in the fifth round that would stun Adesanya, ‘Poatan’ would then follow up with a couple of shots before referee Mark Goddard would call an end to the fight as Adesanya stood uneasily against the cage.
The win not only signifies the end of Adesanya’s era but the start of a new one for the 185lb division. Middleweight had begun to stagnate under Adesanya, who had cleared out any viable contenders before the arrival of Pereira, whose wins opens up numerous exciting matchups and scenarios.
Khamzat Chimaev wants Alex Pereira
Pereira showed some vulnerability to grappling, being taken down and having his back taken by Adesanya who is hardly known for his offensive grappling.
It would be a surprise then that explosive grappler, Khamzat Chimaev would call for his shot at Pereira.
Ready to fight in Brazil @AlexPereiraUFC let’s go champ
— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) November 13, 2022
Chimaev is seemingly just one big win away from earning a crack at the UFC welterweight title, but it is almost a guarantee that Chimaev will at one stage have to make the move up to middleweight on a permanent basis.
Chimaev’s weight issues have been well documented, missing weight for his headlining bout against Nate Diaz by an extraordinary 7.5lbs, causing the entire card to be reshuffled.
UFC president says he will give Chimaev one more opportunity to make the 170lb limit, which is rumored to be against former title challenger, Coby Covington.
Who would win, Khamzat Chimaev or Alex Pereira?