Khamzat Chimaev keeps it practical when asked if Dricus Du Plessis would be his most difficult opponent yet

Khamzat Chimaev refused to engage in speculative talks about a potential fight with Dricus du Plessis. The Chechen-born fighter is likely the next challenger to du Plessis' middleweight title.

Chimaev's first-round submission win over former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 has enabled him to stake a solid claim to the title shot. Oddsmakers seem convinced with his chances against du Plessis as Chimaev opened as a -200 favorite on the early betting odds.

However, he does not see the fight as a foregone conclusion. In a recent interview, Adam Zubayraev asked Chimaev how he saw the potential fight play out. 'Borz' responded with a practical answer:

"If you don't fight, you won't know... I can have certain opinion about my fights but in reality, you only find out when you get in the cage." [Translated from Russian]

When asked who gave him the toughest fight in his undefeated professional MMA career so far, Chimaev said:

"I don't know. What happened [in those fights] is in the past and I don't really think about them. I [went the distance] with Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns. But sometimes, everything goes well in fight camp, sometimes it doesn't and you get sick."

Check out Khamzat Chimaev's comments below (29:25):

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Joe Rogan questions if Dricus du Plessis can defend Khamzat Chimaev's takedowns

Having held his own against credentialed grapplers, Robert Whittaker is one of the most effective anti-wrestlers in UFC history. However, his takedown defense did not hold up against Khamzat Chimaev.

While reigning middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis is also considered among the best grapplers in the division, Joe Rogan has reservations about the South African fighter's chances, especially after Chimaev displayed formidable wrestling against Whittaker.

In an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast that aired on Oct. 30, the UFC color commentator said:

"[Dricus du Plessis] can wrestle, he's got very good Jiu-jitsu. He hits hard and he's a big, durable dude. But I don't know if he's going to be able to wrestle with that guy [Khamzat Chimaev]. I don't know, man. Khamzat's skill is so high level, it makes me wonder..."

He added:

"Some guys in Jiu-jitsu... they look really good until they fight somebody who's really, really good and then they get manhandled. Everybody looks good until they face Gordon Ryan. Is Khamzat at that level? Well, it kind of appears that he is. It appears that, in terms of the grappling that he possesses, he seems magnitudes greater than anybody else in his division."

Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (3:14:12):

While speculations are rife about du Plessis vs. Chimaev, the UFC has not made the official fight announcement so far.