Khamzat Chimaev has a well-defined plan. The current UFC middleweight champion (up to 83,9 kg) wants only one more fight in the division before moving up to light heavyweight (up to 93 kg). Chimaev has already shown interest in moving up a weight class and facing Alex Poatan , the current light heavyweight champion. And, for this possible fight, the Russian may receive help from Jon Jones in training.
Khamzat Chimaev is currently dealing with a leg injury and is not expected to be fit to fight until the end of March 2026, when Ramadan ends. In any case, Chimaev has already expressed interest in connecting with Jon Jones , former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight (up to 120,2 kg) champion.
“ Jon Jones is a legend. I hope one day I can train with him… We’ve talked about it. Maybe I can go to the United States and train with him (Jones),” Khamzat Chimaev told ESPN MMA.
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Khamzat Chimaev's MMA numbers
Khamzat Chimaev doesn't know what it's like to lose. The 31-year-old Russian-Emirati fighter has 15 wins and no losses in his professional record. Chimaev is the current UFC middleweight champion and third in the company's pound-for-pound rankings.
Khamzat Chimaev has been in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) since 2020, when he debuted by defeating John Phillips via submission in the second round of UFC Fight Island 1 in July of that year in the United Arab Emirates.
Since then, Khamzat Chimaev has had nine fights, most of them by knockout, technical knockout, or submission. Only two fights were decided by unanimous decision or majority decision. Before the UFC, Khamzat Chimaev fought in the organizations International Ring Fight Arena (IRFA), Fight Club Rush (FCR), and Brave CF.
Chimaev's numbers over the years are impressive. In the UFC, the Russian leads in control time percentage (76,3%), top position percentage (74,2%), and is in the top five in takedown accuracy (57,1%) in the division.
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