UFC Paris headliner reveals why he likes Khamzat Chimaev as middleweight champion

One half of the UFC Paris main event is happy that Khamzat Chimaev is the current middleweight king.

Chimaev scooped up UFC gold for the first time in his pro MMA career with his dominant grappling performance against Dricus du Plessis. Chimaev gained nearly 22 minutes of control time on his way to a unanimous decision victory at the conclusion of UFC 319.

The UFC Paris main event will see Caio Borralho take on Nassourdine Imavov with potential title implications. Appearing on MMA Junkie Radio, Borralho admitted he’s actually glad that Chimaev is the UFC Middleweight champion, for now.

“For sure, I’m happy that he’s the champion because if people are saying he’s like unbeatable, imagine how good it will be when someone beats him, and this guy is me,” Borralho said. “So, definitely a good place to be right now. I feel very happy for him as a champion. He deserves that. He worked very hard for that. We’re actually a little bit close because I’ve been part of his training camp.

“So, definitely very happy for the guy, but I’m willing to go there and do the business and face him. I just need to come here on Saturday, do a great performance, then after that go for the belt. As a matter of holes in his game, I think it’s about your next fight. His system can deny all the steps that he needs you to take, and then you kind of frustrate him during that, and put him in your game plan and then start to pick him up. So, yeah, that’s it.”

Saturday will be a significant opportunity for Borralho. If he puts on an impressive showing against Imavov in enemy territory, he might emerge as the clear No. 1 contender before Reinier de Ridder and Anthony Hernandez get a chance to throw down. It’s a tall task, as Imavov is riding a four-fight winning streak with wins over the likes of Israel Adesanya and Jared Cannonier.

BJPenn.com will be providing coverage of UFC Paris this weekend. Join us for video highlights and post-fight tidbits.