Khamzat Chimaev is the new king of the middleweight division, and one of the division’s greatest champions has already spoken. Former UFC champion Israel Adesanya praised Chimaev after his dominant unanimous decision win over Dricus du Plessis at UFC 319 in Chicago, a performance that saw the Chechen-born star claim the belt with lopsided 50-44 scorecards across the board.
Years after bursting onto the scene on Fight Island, Chimaev finally captured UFC gold in the United States, breaking multiple records along the way. Over five rounds, he landed more than shot after shots and scored a total of12 takedowns, controlling DDP for 21 minutes. His relentless pace and suffocating wrestling proved too much for the South African, ending his 11-fight win streak and cementing a new era in the division.
Adesanya admitted that Chimaev’s ability to keep up such a relentless pace over five rounds was the most surprising element of the fight.
“Not what I expected, but I’m glad Khamzat fixed his cardio, or improved his cardio to the point where he can go five rounds and just ragdoll people,” said Israel Adesanya on his YouTube channel.
“That’s a mess to deal with, because I thought Dricus, maybe round four, would be able to stuff the takedowns because Khamzat would get tired.”
Instead, Chimaev never slowed down, chaining takedowns together and disrupting du Plessis’ rhythm from start to finish.
“He slowed down Dricus which was very impressive,” said Adesanya.“He prepared very well. His gas tank held up.”
The win impressed Adesanya, who had initially backed du Plessis to beat Chimaev via late TKO. Watching Chimaev go five rounds without fatigue reminded him of his own experiences in the cage.
“Not what I expected,” Adesanya said.“But I’m glad Khamzat fixed his cardio or improved his cardio to the point where he can go five rounds and just ragdoll people. That’s a mess to deal with because I thought DDP, okay, maybe round four, he’d be able to stuff the takedowns because Khamzat would get tired. But he didn’t even slow down. He slowed him down, which was very impressive because that’s when he finished me in round four. Because I thought, okay,
“I got him now, but he just finds a way to get his third wind, fourth wind. But yeah, Khamzat made sure he didn’t even get the first wind and just smothered him. 50-44. That was crazy. Khamzat new middleweight champion, the division is in good hands.”
For Adesanya, who reigned over the middleweight division for nearly four years before suffering losses to du Plessis, Sean Strickland, and Nassourdine Imavov, Chimaev’s performance reassured him that the championship belt is in worthy hands.
