Khamzat Chimaev demands title shot against Israel Adesanya

Khamzat Chimaev wants the UFC Middleweight Title shot against Israel Adesanya. The undefeated star demanded the title shot after UFC 287.

Israel Adesanya defeated longtime adversary Alex Pereira by technical knockout in the UFC 287 pay-per-view main event last Saturday night at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, regaining his middleweight title and tying their MMA record at one apiece.

After a cagey first frame in which Pereira viciously kicked Adesanya's lead leg, the bout exploded into life in the second as both fighters landed head kicks early and Adesanya's precise boxing started to pay off.

In the second round, Pereira delivered a knee that forced Adesanya into the cage. At 4:21, Adesanya finished the bout by coming off the cage with two right hooks, a right hammer fist, and ground and pound.

The 33-year-old Adesanya had never defeated the 35-year-old Pereira. Pereira had already defeated Adesanya twice in kickboxing prior to his Knockout victory for the Middleweight title at UFC 281 in November.

Adesanya or Pereira have already defeated six of the top ten competitors. Although they haven't met yet, Roman Dolidze and Jack Hermansson are both coming off high-profile defeats.

Citing the gap in the middleweight division, Khamzat Chimaev decided to take his shot at the Middleweight champion.

“Congratulations Stylebender see you soon. Now it’s my time, let’s go make it happen Dana White,” Khamzat Chimaev noted on Twitter.

Chimaev is 12-0, with victories at middleweight and welterweight, and is unbeaten. But, "Borz" is also coming off a subpar performance on the scale and has not yet faced a middleweight opponent in the Top 15 rankings.

Adesanya, on the other hand, had a veiled threat at Dricus Du Plessis who is currently ranked sixth in the UFC middleweight rankings.

ALSO READ | VIDEO: Israel Adesanya gets revenge, mocks Pereira’s son after KO win at UFC 287

Adesanya, who was raised in New Zealand but was born in Nigeria, joined the UFC in 2018. He won the middleweight title in 2019 by startling then-champion Robert Whittaker in a knockout.

ALSO READ | UFC 287 Results: Israel Adesanya Knocks out Alex Pereira to win the title back

What do you think of the challenge from Khamzat Chimaev? Let us know in the comments below.

now it's my time ???????? let’s go make it happen @danawhite ????

— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) April 9, 2023

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