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Khamzat Chimaev believes he would put away UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya with relative ease in a potential clash.
'Borz' claimed that his wrestling will be too much for 'The Last Stylebender' to handle inside the cage. He pointed out that Whittaker took Adesanya's back in their rematch at UFC 271.
According to Chimaev, his wrestling is far superior to Whittaker's and if he manages to take Adesanya's back, it's game over for the champ. During a recent appearance on Ariel Helwani's The MMA Hour podcast, the undefeated fighter broke down a potential clash against Adesanya:
"I think it will be easy for me to smash that guy [Israel Adesanya]. He has zero wrestling. The guy he fought last time [Robert Whittaker] is not a wrestler. He took his back. If I take his back, brother, I squeeze his head off. I take his head off. Easy money for me."
Check out Chimaev's appearance on The MMA Hour podcast below:
Khamzat Chimaev faces the toughest challenge of his UFC career on April 9
Although Chimaev wants to fight Adesanya down the line, his focus currently remains on the welterweight division. 'Borz' is set to take on former welterweight title challenger Gilbert Burns at the upcoming UFC 273 pay-per-view on April 9. A win against 'Durinho' could establish Chimaev as a top-contender and earn him a title shot against Kamaru Usman next.
Burns has won seven out of his last eight fights inside the octagon and his only loss came against the reigning champ. On paper, the Brazilian is surely the toughest opponent of Chimaev's career thus far.
Chimaev is 10-0 as a professional and is on a four-fight winning streak inside the octagon. He picked up first-round finishes over his last three opponents and is tipped to become a champion down the line. It'll be interesting to see how the Russian-born Swede fares against Burns in their upcoming clash.
If Chimaev manages to beat Durinho, he'll surely be regarded as one of the best welterweights on the planet right now. However, if he loses, the aura of invincibility currently surrounding Khamzat Chimaev is bound to take a massive hit.
