LAS VEGAS – Ikram Aliskerov can see a Khamzat Chimaev rematch down the line, but knows he has some work to do.
Aliskerov (13-1) punched his ticket to the UFC with a quick kimura finish of Mario Sousa at Dana White’s Contender Series 54 on Tuesday. The combat sambo champion has justs one setback on his record: a knockout loss to Chimaev in April 2019.
Although the Dagestan native expects to reach the top, he knows Chimaev is a lot further along in his career.
“I don’t want to look too much further because Khamzat got in the top five,” Aliskerov told reporters, including MMA Junkie through an interpreter. “I believe he’s close to the title fight right now. But of course I would love to get to the top rankings and to meet him again.”
Dana White showed Aliskerov high praise for his dominant performance and said he’s ready to fight ranked opposition at middleweight right now. With 14 professional fights under his belt against tough competition, Aliskerov shares the same sentiment.
“I totally agree with Dana. I believe I have everything,” Aliskerov said. “I’m also so hungry right now. I’m ambitious, so I believe I can get to the top five rankings very easily.
“(I want) no time off, no layovers, no time to rest. I want to book another fight and fight until the end of the year, and God willing by the end of next year, I will be in the top five of my division.”
