Israel Adesanya is now sending a direct response over to Khamzat Chimaev.
When Khamzat Chimaev says he wants to fight everybody, he means everybody. The Borz cares not about weight classes, dates, or locations. He just wants to eat. And if you happen to be strapped with gold, that only further increases his appetite.
Reigning UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya fits this description, which is why Chimaev put Izzy’s name in his mouth when listing future foes he is salivating over.
Chimaev would love to move up and seize Adesanya’s gold after his plan of welterweight supremacy comes together with a plotted victory over Adesanya’s buddy and fellow Nigerian-born champion Kamaru Usman.
In the past, when Adesanya was filled in on Chimaev’s bold prediction of an “easy” victory over him should the two ever meet, “The Last Stylebender” opted to give Chimaev the last word, all but dismissing Chimaev’s big talk and calling him irrelevant.
In an appearance this week on Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson, Adesanya shared more details on how Chimaev could prove his relevancy to him and even threw in an old proverb while doing so.
“I feel like when a dog barks at the moon, that’s normal. But when the moon barks at the dog, that’s something special,” Adesanya began when addressing Chimaev’s callout. “So I was like, all right, this guy fights at welterweight. He’s fought at middleweight one time and he’s fought like a low-ranked guy — and definitely can beat some middleweights, but I’m like, ‘Show me something. Show me something.’”
Chimaev will be facing his toughest test to date when he takes on the #2-ranked welterweight Gilbert Burns at UFC 273. For Adesanya, however, the operative word in that sentence isn’t “ranked” or even “two,” but rather it is “welterweight.”
Thus, even if Chimaev smeshes once more, Adesanya would still be unmoved because he’s already convinced of his talent at 170. It’s his middleweight prowess that still needs proving says the champ.
“His last fight was impressive. So I might not like you, but if I’m impressed by what you do, I’ll give you props. He’s a beast, but he’s a beast at 170.”
Do you think we will ever see a fight between Israel Adesanya & Khamzat Chimaev?