Khamzat Chimaev has stated that he expects to be the first to fight Dricus du Plessis following his title win at UFC 297, and if not, the UFC CEO will need to explain why.
Khamzat Chimaev’s got something to say. He’s got his eyes on Dricus du Plessis, the new champ from UFC 297. If he doesn’t get first dibs, the UFC CEO’s got some explaining to do.
“Who else is gonna fight him?” Chimaev asked ESPN. He’s got a point. Israel’s out till 2027. Everyone else has already duked it out. Chimaev? He’s undefeated, undisputed.
They promised him a title fight after the Usman match. He won that one, fair and square. Now, he’s left wondering what’s up.
Dana White’s comments didn’t help. “I don’t think Khamzat is next for the title,” he said. Chimaev’s response? “That’s bulls***, man.”
Du Plessis just beat Sean Strickland in a close middleweight title fight. It was UFC’s first pay-per-view event of 2024. After the event, White was tight-lipped about du Plessis’ future. Will he face Chimaev at UFC 300 in April? Or Israel Adesanya, the former two-time champ?
Chimaev had a health scare after his UFC 294 win over Kamaru Usman. He was “very sick,” plus he injured his hand in the October fight. At the UFC 297 post-fight press conference, White didn’t rule out a title shot for Chimaev. But he didn’t seem convinced that “Borz” would be ready for UFC 300.
“I know he was very, very sick, and I know he’s getting better,” White said. “But I don’t know if he’s fight-at-300 better. We’ll see.”
Chimaev’s ready to rumble at the April 13 event in Las Vegas. If his phone doesn’t ring, he’ll be shocked.
“If you promised me something, you have to answer for your words,” Chimaev said. “I don’t care if it’s some president, or a king. If you give me your word, you have to answer for that.”
He’ll be surprised if someone else gets the next title fight. He hasn’t talked to Dana yet. “He knows better than me,” Chimaev admitted.
“In my mind, it should be me,” he said. He asked Hunter Campbell to let him fight at UFC 300. “So we’ll see what they say.”
He asked before UFC 297. He was sick then, and they asked him during that time. He told his manager to let him get healthy first. Now that he’s back in the gym, he feels it’s the right time. “So I will be ready [for UFC 300] if they give me the fight.”