5 reasons why Khamzat Chimaev's challenge to Robert Whittaker is a bad idea

Khamzat Chimaev is currently in no man's land. The Chechen phenom did himself no favors after he missed weight for his main event bout against Nate Diaz at UFC 279. The PPV was organized as a coronation to crown him as the UFC's next big star. Instead, he faced Kevin Holland in a co-main event bout at catchweight.

The catchweight bout was contested at 180 lbs due to 'Borz' missing weight by 7.5 lbs. This led to countless people, including UFC President Dana White, doubting his ability to ever fight in the welterweight division ever again. The undefeated Chechen's future is now believed to be at 185 lbs.

While a proposed matchup against Paulo Costa never materialized, Khamzat Chimaev recently issued a challenge to Robert Whittaker. It's an exceptional matchup and a true clash of styles. Unfortunately, it's an ill-advised move for 'Borz,' and this list details five reason why.

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#5. Khamzat Chimaev is vulnerable to Robert Whittaker's striking

Khamzat Chimaev is a powerful and deliberate knockout artist. While he's mainly a wrestler, his striking is highly effective due to his fundamentals. The undefeated Chechen often keeps his hands raised and tucked close to his chin. He also ensures that his lead foot is positioned at the outside angle of his foe's lead foot.

This aligns his opponents with his rear hand. Furthermore, he keeps his upper body tight like a loaded spring to land blows with maximum knockout power. Unfortunately, this means he's poorly positioned to move his head off the center line. Worse than that, however, he mainly throws hooks and crosses.

Thus, his effectiveness is at mid-range. This is where Robert Whittaker shines. The Australian legend fights from a bladed stance, bouncing in and out of place. This allows him to stutter-step into combinations at mid-range. His ability to do so is predicated on his opponent's willingness to come forward.

'Borz' always marches forward to apply constant pressure. Against Robert Whittaker, he'll run into punches from a fighter who specializes in creating collisions between his fist and his foe's chin.

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#4. Robert Whittaker's takedown defense is impregnable

While Khamzat Chimaev is a highly skilled wrestler, he's not the first high-level grappler that Robert Whittaker has faced. Furthermore, 'The Reaper' is a skilled wrestler himself, having captured a gold medal at the Australian National Wrestling Championships.

A good indication of his wrestling skills could be seen in his bouts with Olympic silver medalist Yoel Romero. The former middleweight champion proved nearly impossible for 'The Soldier of God' to handle in wrestling exchanges. First, Whittaker used his distance management to force wrestlers to shoot for takedowns from too far out.

Once Romero got a hold of him, Whittaker immediately hooked his arms around the Cuban's under-hooked arms. He did so to either scoot his own hips away and break his foe's posture to escape or turn sideways to shove Romero's head down to his ankle and hop out of his grip.

He is constantly creating space and framing off his opponents, rendering him difficult to pin to the mat. Khamzat Chimaev will struggle immensely to secure takedowns against him. Without takedowns, 'Borz' will be severely limited.

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#3. Khamzat Chimaev's cardio is lacking

While there is frequent talk of how hard Khamzat Chimaev trains and how good his cardio allegedly is in the gym, the only time fans were treated to a showcase of his gas tank was at UFC 273. Prior to the PPV event, 'Borz' finished every single foe he ever faced. Against Gilbert Burns, however, a finish never materialized.

Instead, the undefeated Chechen engaged in a three-round war with 'Durinho.' By the end of the bout, Chimaev was exhausted, and his movements were labored. His punches were far sloppier, and he became defensively irresponsible. This is concerning if a bout against Robert Whittaker is being considered.

The former middleweight champion has been able to fight for 25 minutes at an extremely high pace. Meanwhile, Chimaev's fighting style and alleged COVID-compromised lungs sap him of all his energy, causing him to tire halfway through the second round. If he fails to finish Whittaker in the first round, he'll drown as the bout goes into the later rounds.

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#2. Robert Whittaker is much faster than him

Usually, it's Khamzat Chimaev who enjoys the physical advantage over his opponents. As a welterweight, he is stronger, taller, and more powerful than nearly everyone he faces at 170 lbs. Unfortunately, he's untested at middleweight. But more than that, he'll be at a severe speed disadvantage against Robert Whittaker.

When it comes to striking, 'The Reaper' is blindingly fast. He's able to bounce in and out of range so quickly that Israel Adesanya missed several of his first attempts to counter him during their first bout. This is important, given that Whittaker was repeatedly doing the same thing until it failed.

He kept lunging forward, granting the Nigerian striking specialist countless reads. He was so fast, however, that he proved difficult to catch clean. Of course, Adesanya himself was fast, so he caught Whittaker before securing a second-round knockout.

If Chimaev faces Whittaker, he'll be at a distinct disadvantage in terms of speed. If he can't land his blows while being too slow to defend himself against 'The Reaper,' he will have a far more difficult time striking with the Australian.

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#1. A loss against Robert Whittaker would damage Khamzat Chimaev's image

Undefeated fighters who preserve their spotless records for long career stretches are uncommon. Ever since Khabib Nurmagomedov's retirement, there's been renewed interest in unbeaten phenoms competing inside the octagon. Khamzat Chimaev has managed to fill the void left behind by 'The Eagle.'

While a loss wouldn't be the end of the world for 'Borz,' a lopsided defeat would cause significant damage to his career. Chimaev's entire image is built around him being an unstoppable juggernaut who can't be beaten. A loss would undercut the UFC's effectiveness in marketing him in such a manner.

Against Robert Whittaker, the undefeated Chechen would encounter an opponent who can not only outstrike him in a dominant fashion but an opponent who can neutralize his wrestling and prey on his shallow gas tank. A loss in a closely contested split decision is one thing, a lopsided loss is another matter entirely.