Khamzat Chimaev isn’t receiving many callouts these days, especially after he mauled former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in the co-main event of UFC 308.
Chimaev was slated to face his most formidable challenge yet as he squared off against Whittaker, an Aussie catch-all with a karate-wrestling background.
Instead, he took Whittaker down in the opening frame and applied a face crank so cruel that it flattened Whittaker’s bottom row of teeth, forcing a quick tap.
As Chimaev gears up for his first title opportunity in 2025, he’s met with another middleweight contender who believes he can end his reign of terror.
Bo Nickal issues bold prediction for potential Khamzat Chimaev fight
Unranked middleweight contender Bo Nickal is hot on the tail of Chimaev and believes he has what it takes to give Chimaev his first professional defeat.
“I think that he’s [Chimaev’s] good… but his biggest thing that’s going to crush him in a fight against me is, dude, you’re going to get tired,” Nickal admitted on his YouTube channel.
“You’re [going to gas out, and I won’t]. You’re not going to take me down… you’re going to have to strike me. I’m probably going to be able to take you down. … Here’s the difference between Khamzat and I. [When I go out to fight], zero emotion. I’m competing, I’m here to win. Him, he’s charged up, he’s screaming, he’s yelling… But guess what? If you want to fight and beat the guys who are the best in the world, you have to do it with your brain. “
Before the Penn State wrestler can consider fighting Chimaev, he’ll first have to break into the middleweight rankings. Despite winning, Nickal was booed against Paul Craig at UFC 309.
Sentiment dwindled for Nickal since Craig was 2-3 in his last five fights and put up a good challenge. Before this, Nickal struggled with Cody Brundage at UFC 300, who was arguably 1-4 in his last few fights.
Despite being plagued with inactivity, Chimaev owns wins over two former UFC champions Kamaru Usman and Robert Whittaker, who are the “best in the world” fighters that Nickal refers to in his video.
Who is Khamzat Chimaev fighting next?
Chimaev waits in the wings as the middleweight crown is contested in a rematch between Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland at UFC 312. In the meantime, ‘Borz’ can either wait for his title opportunity, which will come in mid to late 2025, or risk his leverage on another fight.
One option for Chimaev is a super fight with light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. UFC CEO Dana White teased a surprise fight back in December. While details remain under wraps, White emphasized that it’s a fight “you will never see f***** coming.”