UFC is 'annoyingly' dropping the ball on Khamzat Chimaev, says MMA legend: "Dricus du Plessis would like to know"

Chael Sonnen recently shared his thoughts on Khamzat Chimaev seemingly going radio silent and explained why the UFC brass potentially failed to capitalize on the Chechen-born fighter's stardom.

Chimaev is coming off an incredible first-round submission victory over Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 last October. Given his resume, it's no surprise he's considered next in line to face Dricus du Plessis for the UFC middleweight title.

However, Chimaev's apparent health issues and going dark on social media over the past few months have put a dent in the media hype surrounding him.

Despite du Plessis calling for a fight against Chimaev after beating Sean Strickland in their rematch at UFC 312, there's been no solid update on when the two middleweight juggernauts will clash inside the octagon. Addressing the same, Sonnen believes the UFC potentially ruined their chance to make the most of him.

In an interview with Submission Radio, Sonnen opened up about Chimaev's status in the promotion and said:

"He [Chimaev] was a media darling, only two others had ever done [that] - Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey... This guy could not go wrong. The world loved him... Now, it's the exact opposite. You can't get an interview with him... We don't even know for sure what country he's living in. It really is a peculiar thing."

Sonnen continued:

"He's very clearly the No.1 contender and there's somebody in that region of the world with some influence that very much wants to make sure that it [title fight] happens. Why isn't it happening?... DDP would like to know when this is happening... It's getting to a point where it's annoying... You're going to crush the drive of the entire room."

Catch Chael Sonnen's comments below (26:31):

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Bo Nickal shares his thoughts on potential Dricus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight

Bo Nickal recently shared his thoughts on a potential Dricus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight and explained why 'Stillknocks' would have a hard time preparing for the Chechen-born grappler.

In an interview with Home of Fight, Nickal lauded Chimaev's exceptional wrestling skills and gave him an edge in a possible clash against du Plessis. He said:

"I think I’d give the edge to Khamzat because of that wrestling advantage. You just don’t get [to train] against strong grapplers like that [Chimaev]. You’re not used to that. No matter what Dricus is gonna do, he’s not gonna be able to gameplan for that, [because] he’s not gonna felt [feel] that from anyone."

Catch Bo Nickal's comments below (20:45):