“He doesn’t have to fight again till he gets title shot,” Bo Nickal strongly believes Khamzat Chimaev will get next 185-pound title fight

The UFC middleweight title has changed hands frequently in the recent past. Not long ago, Israel Adesanya avenged his loss to Alex Pereira in a title fight. Now, Dricus Du Plessis reigned as the champion after beating Sean Strickland in UFC 297. Soon, questions arose about who would fight for the title next. As such, Adesanya and Khamzat Chimaev were the front runners. Now, UFC prospect Bo Nickal gave his thoughts on his division’s next title challenger.

In his recent podcast Nickals and Dimes, Bo Nickal assumed the UFC would prefer Israel Adesanya but also acknowledged Khamzat Chimaev’s chances. He believed Borz could even wait for the title shot and not fight anyone else. Here is what he said:

I would guess that they do Adesanya. Dude, they're going to give Khamzat the title shot for sure, at some point. I don’t think that he is going to have to fight again till he gets the title shot. Do I think he deserves that? No. He hasn't fought a single 85-er. He's fought less 85-ers than me.

Bo Nickal via Nickals and Dimes

Khamzat Chimaev last fought Kamaru Usman at UFC 294. UFC CEO Dana White announced it as a title eliminator and promised the winner of the fight a title shot. As such, ‘Borz’ won the fight via Majority decision. However, he couldn’t make a quick turnaround to fight for the championship in UFC 297. This led the UFC to book Sean Strickland vs. Dricus Du Plessis, and the former came out as the winner via split decision.

As a fellow middleweight, Bo Nickal felt Chimaev didn’t deserve the title fight but assumed the UFC might push him for it. ‘Borz’ remained undefeated in the UFC and racked up an MMA record of 13-0. But he has only fought once in 185lbs in the last three years, and that too against a welterweight moving up. This was a major criticism from Nickal.

Bo Nickal wanted to face Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 294

Khamzat Chimaev was to fight Paulo Costa in UFC 294. However, Costa pulled out of the fight for medical reasons. As such, the UFC scrapped the fight and put forth a short-notice bout between Chiamev and Kamaru Usman. With an immediate cancellation, the UFC would’ve contacted numerous fighters to step in. However, Bo Nickal stated he didn’t even get a call regarding the matter despite being interested in fighting ‘Borz.’

Bo Nickal first said he was disappointed after the UFC didn’t approach him to replace Paulo Costa. Then, he took shots at the Khamzat Chimaev, stating the UFC protected him. Earlier, Nickal and ‘Borz’ ignited a feud when they argued about the best wrestling. As such, competing in the same division, a potential matchup could be on the cards in the future.

Bo Nickal last fought Val Woodburn in UFC 290. He secured a spectacular knockout win and extended his win streak to five, finishing all in the first round. Now, he is to face Cody Brundage in the historic UFC 300. As for Chimaev, he believed he would fight for the title next and called out Dricus Du Plessis.

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