"May not be the strongest grappler, but he's a strong, built dude" - Aljamain Sterling explains why Belal Muhammad may be able to "equal" Khamzat Chimaev inside the octagon
Despite a controversial week, Khamzat Chimaev put on a dominant performance at UFC 279. He quickly defeated Kevin Holland via submission to improve his mixed martial arts record to 12-0. Bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling believes that he may be ahead of the entire welterweight division, but did list one welterweight who could give him problems.
Russian Sambo is unbeatable. Holland has a black belt in BJJ - Look at how easily Khamzat Chimaev dismantled him. Overall, a win or a loss depends on the individual athlete's talent, but Pound for Pound, Sambo is a far superior fighting style.
#UFC279 https://t.co/8zEmA60IbQ
While speaking on his FunkMasterMMA podcast, Aljamain Sterling broke down the welterweight division. He shared that he believes Khamzat Chimaev is a lock to eventually become a champion.
"The rankings were Khamzat Chimaev at three behind Covington and behind Usman, and of course Leon Edwards, the champion. I can't see anyone else on this list who can really give him a significant challenge unless they are going to be specialists in the grappling department and not just BJJ. They have to have some type of wrestling. I think Khamzat is a shoo-in to be a champion already."
He continued by listing one welterweight who he believes could give Chimaev problems.
"When I look through the rankings, I see a guy like Belal Muhammad who may not be the strongest grappler, but he's a strong built dude who uses a grinding style to press you against the cage to neutralize your position, beat you up with knees, and if he can get the submission, he'll get the submission. He's a strong shredded dude... I think it's going to take a guy, or should I say style like that for Chimaev to run into that's going to be his equal. Maybe Usman, I think he can thwart some of that off but then I think if he gets Usman down, how does Usman get back to his feet?"
Watch Aljamain Sterling's full comments on Belal Muhammad, Khamzat Chimaev and the welterweight division below (starting at the 1:09 mark):
Belal Muhammad has not been shy about wanting the opportunity to fight Khamzat Chimaev. He previously called out Chimaev, to which he was told that the No.3-ranked welterweight would accept the fight under one condition:
Stop picking on guys who don’t want to fight you .. only two fighters in the top 5 that haven’t fought Kamaru winner gets next . @danawhite @seanshelby twitter.com/KChimaev/statu… https://t.co/cUZmDaV9Ri
🏼I will fight you if you don't take the Palestinian flag into battle @bullyb170 ☝🏼
What's next for Khamzat Chimaev?
It seems like we have been hearing that Khamzat Chimaev is destined for a UFC title for quite some time now. His title shot was delayed due to Leon Edwards' shocking victory over Kamaru Usman. Had Usman retained his belt, Chimaev seemed to be next in line.
Instead, it will likely take another fight before he gets his title shot, particularly after missing weight among other controversial moments during a rough fight week. One intriguing matchup would be Colby Covington, who Chimaev has previously called out.
Where are you ? 🤡@ColbyCovMMA
While Chimaev has accused Covington of ducking him, fans have set their eyes on a potential matchup between the two welterweights for quite some time. Covington hasn't fought many ranked fighters and people want to see how he will look against a top welterweight like Chimaev.