Joe Rogan questions if ‘biggest UFC middleweight star’ can cut the line to fight Khamzat Chimaev

Joe Rogan is curious to see if the UFC middleweight division’s “biggest star” can leapfrog his way to another title fight.

Khamzat Chimaev is the reigning 185-pound titleholder following a dominant grappling performance against Dricus du Plessis back in August. Nassourdine Imavov made a case for the next middleweight title shot after defeating Caio Borralho at UFC Paris. The winner of the Oct. 18 bout between Reinier de Ridder and Anthony Hernandez also has a chance to secure the next 185-pound title shot.

During an edition of “JRE Fight Companion,” Rogan pondered the possibility of Sean Strickland cutting in front of Imavov and the winner of “RDR” vs. “Fluffy” to challenge Chimaev (h/t MMAJunkie).

“Who’s getting Khamzat next? It really depends what that fight (De Ridder vs. Hernandez) looks like, right, because this was a f*cking war,” Rogan said of Imavov vs. Borralho. “This was a good fight. He might not have stopped him, but he put on a show. They both went after it. Interesting, but who is the big star behind these guys now, behind Imavov? So Imavov just has this great performance. Who’s the big star other than him? (Strickland) is the biggest star, for sure.

“I wonder if he can get right back in there like that? But does he go right back into a title shot or does he have to fight somebody? He lost to Dricus (Du Plessis). He hasn’t lost to anybody since then. That was quite a while ago. He also had staph going into that second fight (against Du Plessis at UFC 312). You’re also fighting one of the most physical guys in the division who’s a f*cking bulldog. Dricus is an animal. He never gets tired, comes f*cking throwing haymakers at you, he keeps punching.”

As Rogan mentioned, Strickland was outgunned by du Plessis in their title rematch. Fans won’t like to hear the excuses made for Strickland regarding the staph infection. Still, Chimaev vs. Strickland figures to be the most lucrative fight that can be made in the middleweight division. Strickland would likely need to at least win his next fight before that conversation can be taken seriously, barring unforeseen circumstances.

BJPenn.com will continue to update you on the latest regarding the UFC middleweight division.