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Ali Abdelaziz has confirmed that Khamzat Chimaev looks set to return to action with the UFC this summer.
Chimaev's story has been one of the biggest rollercoaster rides in recent MMA history. He went from defeating two men in 10 days to knocking out Gerald Meerschaert to not being seen for months, courtesy of complications from COVID-19.
Chimaev even decided to retire from the sport at one stage, only to change his mind later on - seemingly due to pressure from outside sources.
There are still plenty of question marks hanging over Chimaev's head when it comes to just how compromised he may be after his bout with COVID-19. But for the time being, it really is anyone’s guess as to what his route forward is going to be.
However, according to Abdelaziz, we can expect to see Chimaev back in the Octagon during the summer months. Here's what the former tweeted out:
“The wolf been in the mountain plotting coming to you in the summer @KChimaev #Hungrywolf”
Khamzat Chimaev's long-awaited comeback
Regardless of whether or not Chimaev comes back at welterweight or middleweight, this would be the definition of a huge boost for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Chimaev shot to fame last year, and, if anything, the fact he hasn’t been able to compete since September has only allowed his legend to grow even further.
He had previously been matched up on several occasions with Leon Edwards only for the fight to fall apart.
And after everything that’s happened, we don’t think Chimaev is going to get such a highly ranked opponent in either of the aforementioned divisions.
The priority, of course, is that Khamzat is healthy enough to compete at such a high level. If we can’t see the very best from him, many will wonder whether it’s better for him to continue to rest and wait until the back-end of 2021.
Right now, all of this feels incredibly speculative, but in many ways, that’s the nature of Ali Abdelaziz’s job. He needs to get people invested and excited about the idea that Chimaev will be back and better than ever, even if the jury is still out.
