UFC rising star Khamzat Chimaev has displayed some lightning hand speed in his latest training footage having returned to the gym.
Chimaev made his latest octagon outing last month when he took on late replacement Kevin Holland and choked him out in the opening round to continue his undefeated streak. The Chechen star has continued to show his rising stocks and was closing in on a 170lb title shot before missing weight to face Nate Diaz, which will now likely signal a switch to 185lb after struggling to make the cut.
Despite uncertainty over his immediate future, Chimaev has continued to impress and showed his sensational wrestling ability when recording yet another submission win over contender Holland last time out. 'Borz' has already made a return to training and has now shown off yet more impressive action during a quick shadow boxing session in his gym.
The 28-year-old began by facing the camera and showing off his lightning fast hands landing a series of whipping jabs and hooks before turning with his feet to face the mirror and continue. He then upped the tempo throwing a barrage of swift shots to show off his nimble striking with a smile as he acknowledged his work.
Chimaev has shown he is capable of producing some elite striking work particularly in his thrilling contest with Gilbert Burns where he was forced to recover from two knockdowns to outpoint his rival. Several exciting tests lay in wait for Chimaev particularly if he moves to 185lb where he would look to force his way through to a title shot against Israel Adesanya.
And despite having yet to fight at 185lb since joining the UFC Chimaev believes that a shot against 'Style Bender', who is undefeated at 185lb, would be easy work. "Yeah, I'm ready for him," Chimaev told former UFC champion Henry Cejudo on his YouTube channel when assessing a leap up in weight to face Adesanya. "I still don't know when I see his last fight, I told the guys, 'He's an easy fight for me.'
Who do you think Khamzat Chimaev should face next? Let us know in the comments section below
"How he fights, how he fights a guy. It's like, for me, makes comfortable when I see the fight. He gets taken down and then he gives his back to the guy who's not a wrestler, not like ground guy. All his fights he's doing only standup. Robert Whittaker took his back. When I see that, if I take his back, I'll take off his head."
UFC legend Chael Sonnen believes instead that Chimaev would be better suited accepting the challenge of leading contender Whittaker before jumping up to take on the Nigerian. He stated on his YouTube channel: "Whittaker versus Chimaev is a very interesting match. Whittaker does not get his credit, I know that you guys think he's great, I know that he's ranked number one."
