In a new era in the middleweight division at UFC 319, Kanshebbers will come thickly and quickly for the new Kingpin Khamzat Chimaev.
Khamzat Chimaev came out of a completely dominant victory over the defending champion Drus Du Plessis from the opening exchange and appeared with the middleweight crown on tow rope in Chicago, completely intact from the combination.
And while he comes under fire of many in the community for his grab-heavy attack on Du Plessis, do not expect that many contenders enjoy the chance to accept the following to Chimaev.
Photo by Ed Mulholland/Zuffa LLC
But nevertheless, the Tshechyna star seems ready, prepared and competent – almost immediately – to take on all newcomers to his belt.
Khamzat Chimaev welcomes the fight with UFC Paris winner following
Apparently Focus is already changing on his duties as sitting Golden Holder, Chimaev already has a few potential challengers on his radar.
The Chechen star has welcomed the chance to compete against Nassourdine Imavov, the current number one competition or the Brazilian star Caio Borralho, who served as the official backup of the UFC 319 headliner.
And with the Gunning duo for their chance to fight for middleweight, they meet in just a few weeks in UFC Paris in a trip to France for the promotion, in an attempt to earn their shot at the new Chimaev champion.
In view of the dominant character of his title fight, the intact Chimaev was also considered a suitable addition to UFC 321 in October by promotional boss Dana White – in a quick -fire -smoke for the new champion.
Potential challengers for the new title of Khamzat Chimaev
The most likely immediate challenge for the throne of Chimaev is likely to come from those main event pairs in the French capital next month.
Imavov currently has the number one rank on 185 pounds, fresh from his stunning knockout victory over Israel Adesanya in the middle -old earlier this year.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Moreover, the number six ranked Borralho has also emerged as a force that must be taken into account in the middleweight.
Another product of the Contender series of Dana White, Borralho has so far enjoyed a rougher point of seven straight victories in the Octagon since his move.
Borralho represents the Fighting Nerds and has shown both his striking and entry talent in the organization, and the most recently a decision -making victory in Jared Cannonier.
And to start up, he feels like a candidate who can really mix it all – relevant to survive Chimaev's fierce struggling attack – who has not yet succeeded in traversing a hunter.
Wildcard Pick to fight against Khamzat Chimaev for Gold Next
The Dutch Grijp -Aas Reinier de Ridder is among his middleweight colleagues on a huge wave of Momentum and is an important threat to the establishment at 185 pounds.
Last Time-Out defeated the ex-one champion of the Duel-Weight championship former champion and common enemy Robert Whittaker with a new striking victory in his first headliner.
Photo by Fadel Senna/AFP via Getty images
Slightly higher than Borralho in the pecking order at number five in the division, De Ridder has already won four wins in the Octagon, even though he made his bow shy for 10 months ago.
A decorated grappler who has added a certain wrinkle to his game in the form of vicious body attacks and banging knees, would present the knight an interesting obstacle for Chimaev to surpass.
Of course, Chimaev has been dropped off with some decent grapplers in the past, in particular Gilbert Brandt on the limit of Welterweight; However, the Brazilian was really substandard for the combination – because in the past he had been as low as lightweight.
The added intrigues of the knight and its size, combined with offensive wrestling, makes this a clear fight that we would like to see in the not too distant future, regardless of whether it is the following or not.