Israel Adesanya On Why He Wants To Fight Khamzat Chimaev

Former two-time UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is set to compete in Saudi Arabia against Nassourdine Imavov. Still, there is another fighter the ex-champ has his eye on, at least since that competitor dispatched another former UFC middleweight titleholder earlier this year.

Adesanya, speaking on his YouTube channel, recently sang the praises of the highly-ranked and undefeated Khamzat Chimaev.

“Khamzat? Nah, I knew they were going to go with this (Du Plessis vs. Strickland) fight because I knew it was coming, they’ve already organized it,” Adesanya said. “So, I wasn’t like, ‘Oh, what?’ But I was surprised the way Khamzat ran through Rob. That was crazy, that was like, ‘Wow.’ That made me want to fight him. I was like, ‘OK, (expletive). This guy’s actually really, really good.'”

Chimaev (14-0) is the No. 3 ranked fighter in the official UFC middleweight rankings. He met ex-UFC 185-pound champion Robert Whittaker in the co-main event of UFC 308. Chimaev became the first man to submit Whittaker under the UFC banner in that matchup, ending the fight in the first round with a vicious face crank that left Whittaker needing post-fight dental work.

Adesanya (24-4) , who is the No. 2 ranked fighter in the UFC’s 185-pound division, is riding the first two-fight losing skid of his MMA career. The 35-year-old saw his second run as UFC middleweight champion end in September 2023 when he dropped a one-sided decision to Sean Strickland in a fight where he was an enormous betting favorite.

The ex-champ had an opportunity to become a three-time UFC titleholder in August 2024, but fell short in that bout, losing to Dricus Du Plessis by rear-naked choke in the fourth round of their UFC 305 battle. The loss was the first submission defeat of Adesanya’s career.

Imavov (15-4-0-1) is ranked fifth in the UFC middleweight division ahead of his UFC Saudi Arabia main event matchup against Adesanya. Imavov is riding a four-fight unbeaten streak. His most recent outing was a unanimous decision win over Brendan Allen in September.

Imavov’s most recent loss came in January 2023 when Sean Strickland bested him via unanimous decision.

The UFC Saudi Arabia fight card takes place on Saturday, February 1 from ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The event streams on ESPN+, with prelims starting at 9 a.m. ET and the main card at 12 noon ET.

The next UFC middleweight title fight takes place on Saturday, February 8 from Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. The fight sees Du Plessis put his title on the line against Strickland in a rematch.

The first meeting between Du Plessis and Strickland took place in January 2024 in the main event of UFC 297. Du Plessis earned a split-decision victory in that contest, which didn’t sit well with Strickland. Since that fight, Du Plessis (22-2) defeated Adesanya, while Strickland (29-6) picked up a split-decision victory over Paulo Costa in June.

The Du Plessis vs. Strickland rematch headlines the UFC 312 card, which is the second pay-per-view event on the UFC’s 2025 schedule.