“@AlexPereiraUFC Congrats, now we need to finish our business 🫡.” Sometime after he dispatched Magomed Ankalaev, ‘Poatan’ received this message from Khamzat Chimaev, setting off a buzz across the MMA world. It’s been two months since the Russian fighter delivered a dominating performance, ousting the previously invincible Dricus du Plessis and claiming his first UFC championship. Now that he has realized his dream, Chimaev wants to unleash his ambitions. One of the best matchups that could potentially fulfill his goals is a fight against the new light heavyweight champion.

Across several corners, the call-out has been welcomed. A fight between two of the UFC’s biggest stars is something most fans dream of. However, to a few, Khamzat Chimaev‘s intentions stand in stark contrast to the ground realities. So it was time for someone to point the torch in the Russian’s direction, lest he lose his way. According to Chael Sonnen, challenging Alex Pereira is one thing; the actual situation, however, tells a different story.

Khamzat Chimaev needs to stop and reconsider the Alex Pereira fight

To begin with, the former contender seems to like the idea of Khamzat Chimaev vs. Alex Pereira, whom he keeps referring to as Pierra. But he also expressed some reservations. Summing up the scenario, Sonnen said, “These ideas and themes that come in MMA—it appears that we’re living through one right now, which is fight anybody you can fight other than the guy that you’re supposed to fight.”

During an interview with Arslanbek Badaev, Chimaev opened up about the potential matchup against Alex Pereira. “If you ask me, of course, I would love to fight for the second belt. It’s not a secret; the guy (Alex Pereira) who has got the belt at 205 lbs. now is a very good matchup for me, except if I should get reckless standing with him,” he said.

So maybe Chimaev wants to capture a new championship belt through the Pereira fight, Chael Sonnen opined. However, when he tried to visualize the bout, a different script appeared. “One thing that Pierra (Pereira) has not faced is that world-class wrestler,” Sonnen stated. One might think constant pressure would eventually break Pereira. But…

Fighters have tried to impose their wrestling, but Pereira’s scramble and return-to-feet proved effective. So Sonnen questioned whether Chimaev’s wrestling would be enough.

Another aspect comes into play: the size difference.

Careful where you step, Khamzat Chimaev

“We understand that Pereira is much bigger than Chimaev. Chimaev walks around; he’s going to get in that ring maybe at 203 lbs., maybe. And that’s all he’s going to weigh,” Chael Sonnen said. In contrast, Pereira would step into the cage at or above 230 pounds. So he had a simple question: “Can you pressure takedown, rinse, and repeat somebody like Pereira for 25 minutes?”

He loved that fighters want big fights, but he’s not convinced. Khamzat Chimaev has at least two obvious, logical next opponents within the middleweight division, although Chael does not see them as obvious or logical. So, calling out Pereira, a light heavyweight, instead of notching a few title defenses is not realistic. Sonnen dished out a few options within the division, such as Anthony Hernandez, Nassourdine Imavov, or Reinier de Ridder.

Even if logistically odd, hype often pushes fighters to call out high-profile names.

To set the record straight, Sonnen explained that, just like Khamzat Chimaev, Pereira himself called out the former heavyweight Jon Jones after the Ankalaev fight. But he has multiple defenses and title wins across divisions to his name. Perhaps Chimaev’s confidence stems from Pereira’s success across two divisions. If he defeats the Brazilian, one of the UFC’s biggest draws, the triumph would cement his legacy.

But as Chael Sonnen highlighted, it’s far easier said than done.

What’s your take? Do you think Chimaev vs. Pereira is a feasible matchup?