Rober Whittaker has explained why he thinks Khamzat Chimaev would be a bad fight for Colby Covington.
After initially teasing a permanent move up to middleweight, it appears as if Khamzat Chimaev has changed his mind. Now, ‘Borz’ has his sights set on finally claiming the UFC welterweight championship.
In order to do so, though, he almost certainly has to go through Colby Covington.
‘Chaos’ is one of the top welterweights on the planet and Chimaev knows that. As such, it makes sense for the UFC to book them against one another while Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman conclude their rivalry with a trilogy next year.
In terms of reactions to the possible match-up, Robert Whittaker has a pretty interesting one.
“Stylistically, fight-wise, I think that’s a terrible fight for Colby,” Whittaker said. “Terrible. Because you saw with Usman that anyone Colby can’t just relentlessly spam takedowns on, it becomes a kickboxing fight and a striking match. And I think Covington’s great at what he does, but he’s not a kickboxer, he’s not a striker by trade. That doesn’t come naturally to him.
Chimaev vs Covington – will it happen?
“His pressure style and wrestling style is what comes naturally to him. Khamzat can counter-wrestle Colby. He’s a big dude with long range and a lot of reach, and his striking is nothing ridiculously crazy, but it’s put together at a high level. And he integrates that with the threat of his wrestling and grappling takedowns stupendously. So, I think Khamzat for Colby is a bad matchup.”
Quotes via MMA Junkie
Who would you favour to win – Colby Covington or Khamzat Chimaev? Can you see this fight happening anytime soon or will the UFC go in a different direction? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments, BJPENN Nation!
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