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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Harry Davies

Khamzat Chimaev backed to challenge champions Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman

Rising UFC star Khamzat Chimaev has been backed to challenge for the welterweight and middleweight world titles.

Chimaev is currently ranked at No.11 at 170-pounds and is linked to fight top contender Gilbert Burns at UFC 273 in April.

'Borz' has switched between welterweight and middleweight during his four fights in the UFC, but hasn't competed at 185-pounds since 2020.

UFC president Dana White has admitted finding an opponent for Chimaev has been tough as several fighters don't want to face him.

Darren Till - who is currently training with Chimaev in Sweden - thinks he will be a nightmare matchup for current middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

“If Khamzat gets a hold of Adesanya, Adesanya’s going to have a really tough night. He’s f***ing super strong. As I told you, the most impressive thing is his physical condition," he told Frontkick.online.

Khamzat Chimaev is unbeaten in 10 professional fights (Zuffa LLC)

"He does not get tired. Once he grabs hold of you, he just does not stop. So, can you imagine having a guy like that for five rounds? That’s very tough.

"First Khamzat's got to win the welterweight strap, I believe he can achieve that. He has got some tough competition, I've trained with Leon [Edwards] who's a super tough guy, very technical.

"Usman, Colby and some of these guys. I think it's the same as the middleweight division, it's open wide. All the guys are so good."

Chimaev called out Adesanya after his recent title defence at UFC 271 and predicted he would finish him in the first round if they fought.

With current 170-pound champion Kamaru Usman likely to fight Edwards in the summer, a fight between Chimaev and Burns could produce the next title challenger.

Former welterweight title challenger Till and Chimaev teased a fight last year during a friendly encounter on Instagram live.

Can Khamzat Chimaev become a two-weight UFC champion? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below

After being out-grappled and submitted in his last fight, Till was encouraged by Chimaev to fly out to Sweden and train with the accomplished wrestler.

And the Liverpudlian has been extremely impressed by Chimaev's work ethic since training at the Allstars gym.

"When Khamzat had his first UFC fight I thought 'oh who's this guy' so I messaged him on Instagram if he wanted to fight," he added.

"I liked him, I liked his attitude. So we stayed in touch, I knew a few of the guys from Allstars. Khamzat said 'come and train brother, I'm gonna get you back up and motivated'.

"It's such an honour to be training here at Allstars with Khamzat. He trains super hard, he's super dedicated and he knows where he wants to be."

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