No.2 ranked middleweight contender Nassourdine Imavov appears likely to be the first challenger to Khamzat Chimaev’s middleweight title in 2026, but it seems that he won’t be changing the focus of his training, despite the threat presented by the champion’s elite wrestling ability.

“We’ll focus on our strengths,” Imavov told RMC Sport. “People think if you’re facing a wrestler, you must focus only on wrestling. That would be a mistake. I’m not a wrestler by nature. You see, I’m a striker. I’ll work on my strength. That’s what makes the difference. That’s how I win my fights. And without forgetting my wrestling of course. We’ll work heavily on takedown defense. “

It’s worth noting that the fight hasn’t yet been made official, with Khamzat having already revealed that he won’t be ready to defend the title until after Ramadan in Mid-March next year.

And Imavov has acknowledged that there’s a chance that Khamzat just makes the decision to move up to light-heavyweight instead, though that doesn’t appear to be an outcome that troubles him.

“It’s a scenario I’ve already played in my head [Khamzat might move up]. But it’s not that bad. All I want from the beginning is not to face Khamzat; it’s to take the UFC belt.”