Jake’s Takes – Covington vs Chimaev makes perfect sense

In 2021, the MMA world saw Khamzat Chimaev shoot into superstardom. The welterweight contender broke into the top ten with a stoppage of Li Jingliang, promising to smash every fighter in his path en route to a title. Many fighters have thrown their name in the hat to derail the Chimaev hype train, but the most notable was a former champion looking to get back on track; Colby Covington.

This is my two cents on it all – this is Jake’s Takes!

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The 170lb landscape looks a lot different with Khamzat Chimaev in the mix. The Chechen-Swede has torn through every opponent put in front of him, with UFC 267 seeing him rip through Li Jingliang to take a spot in the rankings. On top of a seemingly unstoppable skillset, Chimaev is hugely popular with the MMA community, making him a name that’s often on the tongues of fighters and fans.

UFC president Dana White, however, says that the promotion is having a very tough time trying to find suitable fights for the rising star. Going as far as to say that the welterweight division is “100% scared” of Chimaev, if you were to believe White, it seems like nobody wants that fight at all.

You’d be mistaken to believe that though. Perennial contender Neil Magny has been campaigning for a main event spot against Chimaev since the Swede’s breakout performances in 2020. White has since acknowledged Magny’s callout, but has yet to confirm or deny that the UFC will move ahead with that matchup. Lest we forget #3 ranked Leon Edwards, who was scheduled to fight Chimaev on 3 different occasions.

More recently, #5 ranked Belal Muhammad and Chimaev have been trading barbs over social media. This has caught the attention of fans, who want to see the two face off in a 170lb title eliminator. At the time of writing, Dana White hasn’t publically spoken about this potential.

For me, while all of these matchups are intruiging, there is one that sticks out as the obvious choice. Former interim champion Colby Covington has thrown his hat into the ring for a clash with Chimaev in 2022. Promising to “halt his hype in a very violent way”, it seems like Covington is very much open to the idea of the fight.

Though not confirmed by Dana White, reports on the fight suggested that it was in the works for UFC 272. Speculation fizzled after the Muhammad/Chimaev spat, but if the earlier reports are to be believed, this fight could very much be on the table for March or April.

Personally, I’m hoping that this fight does come to fruition. Even if you’re not a fan of Chimaev, you have to acknowledge his fighting ability. Between the power in his hands & the phenomenal wrestling, he really does look like whole package. This fight would serve as an litmus test for Chimaev, to see if he truly is ready for the elite at 170lbs.

A win over Chimaev for Covington would be exactly what he needs for his own career right now. Coming off a second failed shot at the belt against Kamaru Usman, Covington needs a big name to get himself back into the title picture. There are few names bigger in MMA at this exact than Khamzat Chimaev. Negotiating the fight may be difficult for Covington, but this is the fight to take for both men, in my eyes.

Whether or not the promotion proceeds with this bout straight away, it would disappointing not to see ‘The Wolf‘ go up against ‘Chaos‘ in 2022.