Khamzat Chimaev possesses the necessary skills to beat Israel Adesanya, according to Kenny Florian.
Florian stated that Chimaev's "dominant wrestling style," coupled with his devastating power on the feet, could potentially neutralize Adesanya's skills. Speaking to Jon Anik on the Anik and Florian podcast, the former UFC fighter-turned-analyst said:
"Dude, [Khamzat] is the guy with skills. He's the guy with the skills, and based on what we have seen so far, not only does it seem like he has some good power on the feet but of course, what stands out most is that dominant wrestling style. That is absolutely a fight that will be interesting in the future. [Khamzat] still needs more experience to make sure that's the case but yeah, based on what I've seen Jon, he just might be the worst matchup for Adesanya."
Watch Kenny Florian talk about a potential matchup between Israel Adesanya and Khamzat Chimaev from 12:00 below:
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Khamzat Chimaev has been on a rampant rise in the UFC since making his promotional debut in 2020. 'Borz' holds an undefeated record of 10-0 and is 4-0 in the UFC. He has finished all of his opponents so far in his professional career.
The Russian-born Swedish fighter has impeccable wrestling skills, which were on full display in his last outing against Li Jingliang. Chimaev took the Chinese fighter down with ease in the very first round before finishing him with a submission.
Meanwhile, Israel Adesanya recently defended his middleweight title against Robert Whittaker at UFC 271. 'The Last Stylebender' has now defended his belt four times. He is likely set to take on Jared Cannonier in his next title defense.
Khamzat Chimaev calls for "easy money" fight against Israel Adesanya after UFC 271
Khamzat Chimaev thinks he'll make light work of Israel Adesanya if they were to face each other in the octagon. 'Borz' took to Twitter following Adesanya's win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 271 and asserted that the the Kiwi does not pose much of a challenge for him.
He tweeted:
"@stylebender easy money for me, 0 wrestling. 1 round I’m gonna kill him"
Khamzat Chimaev has competed in the welterweight and middleweight divisions during his time in the UFC.
He is rumored to be taking on top-ranked welterweight Gilbert Burns in his next fight. The bout hasn't been officially announced by the UFC as of yet. The back-and-forth between Chimaev and Burns on social media suggests that the fight is in the works.
In another tweet, 'Borz' revealed the rumored date of the fight - 9th April. UFC 273 is set to go down on that date in Jacksonville, Florida.
If Chimaev continues on his current trajectory, we could see him square off against Israel Adesanya in the near future. It remains to be seen how things will play out for both fighters.