Surging UFC Middleweight Believes Khamzat Chimaev Would Thrive at Light Heavyweight
A surging UFC middleweight contender has shared his thoughts on how Khamzat Chimaev would fare as a light heavyweight.
Chimaev, the newly minted UFC middleweight kingpin, became the champion at UFC 319 by dominantly dethroning Dricus du Plessis. The Chechen-born Emirati is now on the sidelines because of a minor foot injury that will require surgery. He’s expected to make the first defense of his 185-pound title after Ramadan 2026. Chimaev wants to move up after the first defense of his middleweight belt and chase a second UFC title.
‘Borz’ has also expressed interest in fighting on the White House Card.
Recently, Reinier de Ridder, who is also considering a move up to the light heavyweight division, shared his thoughts on how Chimaev would perform at a higher weight class. ‘RDR’ thinks that since the light heavyweight division lacks elite wrestlers, Chimaev will do very well against them and can use his wrestling pedigree to neutralize any and every 205-pounder. ‘RDR’ told Submission Radio:
“I think he would do very well at light heavyweight. His wrestling, in a division that is very low on great wrestling, I think he’d do very well there.”
Check out Reinier de Ridder’s comments below:
Jon Jones also has a similar opinion about Khamzat Chimaev’s chances at light heavyweight
Recently, Jon Jones was asked a similar question to ‘RDR,’ and ‘Bones’ had the same opinion about Khamzat Chimaev. He said:
“I think Khamzat Chimaev can win at any weight. I think he is one of the toughest fighters on the planet right now. I think he’s big enough to compete with heavyweights, and I think he’s still small enough to go down. I think he makes a great welterweight. I would love to see him at light heavyweight. I think he would do great against these guys like [Alex] Pereira and [Magomed] Ankalaev and all these guys.”
Check out Jon Jones’ comments about Khamzat Chimaev below:
