Daniel Cormier thinks Paulo Costa is a No. 1 contender fight for Khamzat Chimaev.
Chimaev (12-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) returns when he takes on Costa (14-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) at UFC 294 on Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
Costa will be Chimaev’s first fight since September 2022 when he submitted Kevin Holland. His absence has raised questions, but either way, Cormier sees big implications for “Borz” if he can beat Costa.
“I don’t understand why Khamzat Chimaev has not fought again since he fought Kevin Holland,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “There’s more to this story than we know. Maybe I’ll do some digging to try and uncover it, but he’s fighting against Paulo Costa.
“If he beats Paulo Costa, Khamzat Chimaev will have earned himself a title fight at 185 pounds. And I don’t think anyone can disagree with that. I don’t believe that beating Gilbert Burns, going up, and now beating Paulo Costa doesn’t get you a championship opportunity. It makes you the No. 1 contender between Israel Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis.”
Prior to beating Holland, Chimaev positioned himself for a welterweight title shot when he outlasted former title challenger Gilbert Burns at UFC 273. Cormier sees wins over Burns and Costa as a big case for a shot at the middleweight title.
“We thought that the Gilbert Burns fight was going to teach a lot about Khamzat, and it did,” Cormier said. “It taught us that he’s as good as they come. It also taught us that regardless of the level of competition, this young man is going to compete the same way – and he did.
“He won a very competitive fight against Gilbert Burns, but Gilbert Burns’ willingness to stand in the fire and fight him is what made it a more competitive fight. Now he’s got a bigger guy in Paulo Costa who’s willing to do the same thing.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 294.
