Khamzat Chimaev should take warm-up fight to gain confidence for potential Dricus du Plessis matchup, claims UFC star: "DDP's scrambly man"

As things stand, Khamzat Chimaev does not have the qualities necessary to beat UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis. That is according to former UFC two-division champion Henry Cejudo, who was a recent guest on the HJR Podcast.

It is Cejudo's opinion that Chimaev will struggle with du Plessis' ability to scramble on the mat during grappling sequences. While he recognizes the skill and talent the unbeaten Chechen possesses, he also has doubts about Chimaev's cardio and ability to pace himself for five rounds.

"Dude, Khamzat... I just... in a five-round fight, man. Seeing two fights with Khamzat, man, Khamzat can beat anybody in the world in about a round. But I don't see that against DDP. DDP's scrambly, man. I was super impressed with what he did to Robert Whittaker, but I just feel like you're gonna need to really be able to pace yourself for five rounds, and with DDP's train just continuing to keep rolling and he's still steaming and his train's still hot, I don't see it, man."

Moreover, the Olympic gold medalist believes that Chimaev would be better served accepting a warm-up fight before taking on the daunting challenge of trying to dethrone du Plessis. This, he owes to Chimaev's lack of five-round experience and the fact that he hasn't been very active.

"Khamzat? Khamzat's probably gonna have to take another fight to feel good and to become champion. Because the fight that he did come with Whittaker, he did beat him fast, dude, but you're gonna have to prepare, man, for a guy like DDP."

Check out Henry Cejudo's thoughts on Dricus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev (2:25 and 3:29):

While the UFC hasn't made any official announcements about the next middleweight title fight, du Plessis is expected to defend his title against Chimaev next.

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Khamzat Chimaev has faced two former UFC champions before

Khamzat Chimaev's last two fights couldn't be more different in terms of his performance. He most recently fought ex-middleweight champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 308, submitting him with shocking ease in round one. Prior to that, though, he had a far more competitive bout with Kamaru Usman.

Check out Khamzat Chimaev vs. Kamaru Usman highlights:

Usman, a former welterweight champion, stepped in on very short-notice to replace Paulo Costa, who had withdrawn from the fight due to health-related complications. While Chimaev was dominant in round, he tired quickly, with Usman taking over halfway through the fight.

In the end, Chimaev won via majority decision, which raised some eyebrows in the MMA community, with some believing a draw was more fitting.