City Kickboxing head coach Eugene Bareman recently weighed in on a potential Israel Adesanya vs. Khamzat Chimaev fight and expressed his displeasure at the mere mention of it.
Adesanya defeated his longtime rival Alex Pereira in their fourth combat sports meeting at UFC 287 via an impressive second-round knockout. After 'The Last Stylebender' reclaimed the middleweight title with a massive win, speculation as to who he will face next has begun.
Khamzat Chimaev is one possible name for Adesanya to consider. Soon after his victory last weekend, 'Borz' called out the Nigerian-born Kiwi.
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While Khamzat Chimaev has undoubtedly established himself as a real threat to the title, coach Eugene Bareman believes the Chechen-born Swede hasn't done enough to warrant a fight against Israel Adesanya at middleweight.
In a recent interview with Submission Radio, Bareman addressed talks of Chimaev facing Israel Adesanya, stating:
"Has Khamzat fought at middleweight yet? We can't be ridiculous... You're just devaluing the organization, you're devaluing the sport, you're devaluing everything that we've stood for."
Watch the full interview below:
Israel Adesanya vs. Khamzat Chimaev: Eugene Bareman on how 'Borz' can earn middleweight title shot
In the same interview, Eugene Bareman laid out what Khamzat Chimaev would have to do to earn a shot at Israel Adesanya's middleweight title. Bareman claimed that Chimaev needs at least three middleweight wins to get his shot at gold, like Alex Pereira did:
"At the minimum, fight three guys that no one's ever heard of, like Pereira, that seems to be... I'm not arguing against fighting Khamzat. I think Khamzat would be a great fight. He's a big name, he's a challenge, and we're all about challenges... I love the challenge, but I'm arguing for the prestige of the UFC, for the brand, and for the sport."
Khamzat Chimaev is undefeated at 12-0 and has won at welterweight and middleweight. However, 'Borz' failed to make weight in his last fight and hasn't competed against a top-ranked middleweight yet.
Apart from Chimaev, middleweight contender Dricus du Plessis and former light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz have emerged as potential opponents for Israel Adesanya. Blachowicz notably holds a win over Adesanya and offered to move down to middleweight in the aftermath of UFC 287.
'The Last Stylebender' teased a potential fight against South Africa's du Plessis at the UFC 287 post-fight presser, but never mentioned his name. 'Stillknocks' occupies the No.6 spot in the 185-pound rankings, with Adesanya having beaten every fighter ranked ahead of him.