The blueprint to beat Khamzat Chimaev isn’t hidden. It’s just brutal to execute. That’s the underlying message coming from Colby Covington, who believes the middleweight champion’s aura of inevitability can be shattered. And as Nassourdine Imavov inches closer to a title shot, ’Chaos’ thinks the French contender might be the one who finally forces the division to ask harder questions.

At UFC 319, ‘Borz’ dismantled Dricus du Plessis over five rounds, piling up 12 takedowns, over 21 minutes of control time, and a staggering 529 total strikes. Those numbers didn’t just win him the belt. They shut down the debate. Or so it seemed. That’s where Covington enters the conversation.

Speaking to Submission Radio in a recent interview, a clip of which was shared by Red Corner MMA on X, the former interim welterweight champion didn’t sugarcoat the problem. When asked whether anyone in the middleweight top 10 could beat Khamzat Chimaev, he admitted, “I mean, you’re gonna have to be able to stop his takedowns. You’re gonna have to be able to strike with him and stop his takedowns, get him tired in that department.”

So, who can pull that off? “Obviously, the most worthy contender is Nassourdine Imavov,” Covington further said. “That’s the fight that needs to happen. And he needs to see if he can get through that test before we start talking about him (Chimaev) being unbeatable.”

That’s not casual praise. Imavov’s profile quietly matches the checklist Covington laid out. According to stats provided by BetMGM, the 30-year-old owns a 78% takedown defense, absorbs just 3.20 significant strikes per minute, and maintains a 59% striking defense, elite numbers for a division dominated by pressure wrestlers.

His last win over Caio Borralho in Paris wasn’t flashy, but it was disciplined. He defended, reset, and forced a measured fight over five rounds. Against Khamzat Chimaev, discipline isn’t optional. It’s survival.

But Colby Covington went deeper into the mechanics to beat Chimaev, he said, “I mean, to beat him, you’re going to have to wrestle into him and defensively have insane sprawls and insane down blocking defense and, stop his takedowns and make a striking fight like Gilbert Burns did, or have such good jiu-jitsu and striking that you can counteract one another. Unless you, you know, you threaten him with submissions or take down defense, he’s just going to be walking through that division.”

That reference matters. Burns pushed Chimaev harder than anyone early in his UFC run, forcing chaotic exchanges and visible fatigue. And fatigue is the crack Covington keeps circling because this isn’t a new take from “Chaos.”

In a previous interview, he even described Chimaev as “gas-heavy,” pointing to later rounds against Burns and Kamaru Usman where the pace slowed and the pressure dipped. “If you can really stuff his takedowns,” Covington argued, “he gets a little anxious and doesn’t fight very good.”

Does Nassourdine Imavov have the tools to do that? Statistically, he might be standing closer to that path than anyone else right now, yet the champion has seemingly already got his sights set on a different challenge, against Alex Pereira!

Khamzat Chimaev calls out Alex Pereira with a promise to “finish” him

While the MMA world debates who can slow Khamzat Chimaev down, the champion appears to be looking past the line altogether. Not sideways at Nassourdine Imavov, towards Alex Pereira. Instead of waiting on the winner of Sean Strickland vs. Anthony Hernandez, or entertaining Imavov’s claim as the next logical challenger, the middleweight champion turned his attention to another weight class entirely!

On a series of posts on X, Chimaev made it clear. “Let’s go White House,” he wrote, before adding the kind of confidence that’s become his signature: “Don’t worry, I will finish you fast @AlexPereiraUFC.”

Then came the provocation aimed straight at Pereira’s base. “All Brazilian fans tell this boy if you’re not scared tell him to fight.” That’s not subtle matchmaking pressure. That’s a statement.

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What does that say about where Khamzat Chimaev’s head is at right now? Is this about legacy rather than logistics? Pereira is one of the UFC’s biggest active stars, a two-division champion with terrifying knockout equity. Beating him detonates narratives. It also bypasses the exact kind of grinding, takedown-heavy fight Covington has described as risky for Chimaev’s gas tank.

Ultimately, where does that leave Nassourdine Imavov? In limbo, but not out of the conversation. If Chimaev stays at 185 lbs, the Covington blueprint still hangs over him like a test he hasn’t retaken. If he moves up, the division gets reshuffled, and the question lingers unanswered. Is ‘Borz’ avoiding his most technical challenger, or simply aiming higher? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!