"He's definitely in line for a title shot" - Khamzat Chimaev earned shot at Kamaru Usman with win over Gilbert Burns, says Daniel Rodriguez
UFC welterweight Daniel Rodriguez believes Khamzat Chimaev has earned a title shot with the win over Gilbert Burns at UFC 273.
In a recent interview with FightClub, Rodriguez touched upon various topics, including his recent injury and his thoughts on Colby Covington. At one point, the 35-year-old commented on Chimaev's rise and his place in the title picture.
According to 'D-Rod', Chimaev's victory against Gilbert Burns was a big achievement for the Chechen-born Swede, which made him worthy of a championship fight.
"I didn't expect him [Khamzat Chimaev] to steamroll Gilbert Burns. That was an amazing matchup against [one] of the top f***ing welterweights in the world, you know, and it showed a lot from both guys. And yeah, that was a big win on his behalf. I think he's definitely in line for a title shot. He's got amazing momentum and the company's doing a great job in promoting him. So I feel like, yeah, if they're gonna promote him that hard, you know, might as well just give him his title shot."
Catch the full interview below:
Although Rodriguez's statement may hold some merit, the UFC has decided to go the other way and has matched up Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards for a championship fight. The two will headline the UFC 278 card on August 20.
Belal Muhammad comments on Khamzat Chimaev's performance at UFC 273
According to Belal Muhammad, Khamzat Chimaev has holes in his fight game that came to light in his bout against Gilbert Burns at UFC 273.
During his appearance on Brendan Schaub's Food Truck Diaries, Muhammad praised 'Borz' for his ability to take shots but said that the Chechen-born Swede had several weaknesses:
"I saw weaknesses in him. Obviously people are like, 'Oh man, he's not as good as we thought he was.' But I'm like, 'Yo, he showed that he had the chin, he showed that he got power,' and it's like, you're fighting Gilbert Burns."
Watch Muhammad on the Food Truck Diaries below:
Muhammad and Chimaev recently had an interaction on Twitter where they both expressed interest in fighting each other.
๐ผI will fight you if you don't take the Palestinian flag into battle @bullyb170 โ๐ผ
@KChimaev Respect bro ..Il bring a flag for you too and we both fight FOR Palestine.. I canโt bring the flag down to battlefield anymore even if I wanted to. Butโฆ
ุฏู ู ููุณุทููู ๐ต๐ธ๐ต๐ธ๐ต๐ธ
Both fighters are having a great run in the UFC at the moment, so a matchup between the two does not seem like a far-fetched idea.