Khamzat Chimaev's rise to the top of the UFC middleweight division has been put on hold, with the undefeated contender set to undergo hand surgery.
Chimaev claimed a majority decision victory over former undisputed welterweight champion Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 in what was slated as a title eliminator at 185 pounds. But, after his hard-earned victory, Chimaev eventually revealed that he hadn't come through the bout completely unscathed.
Commenting on an Instagram live video, Chimaev revealed that he tore a ligament in his right hand and will require surgery to fix the issue.
"I'm going to do a surgery, operation in one, two weeks," Chimaev said.
"After that, do the recovery, come back, smash somebody."
The 29-year-old, whose career stands unblemished at 13-0, already has his sights set on a return, however, and has earmarked one event in particular for his comeback.
"UFC 300, tell Dana White make it happen!" he stated.
Chimaev's UFC career has seen him compete across both the welterweight and middleweight divisions, and he's picked up a string of impressive wins against notable names.
His UFC debut saw him submit former Cage Warriors middleweight champion John Phillips. Then, just 10 days later, he dropped to welterweight and finished another former Cage Warriors champion, Rhys McKee, via first-round TKO, to set a new UFC record for the quickest turnaround between UFC victories.
A return to middleweight saw Chimaev claim a 17-second knockout of Gerald Meerchaert before dropping back to 170 pounds to claim victories over Li Jingliang and Gilbert Burns.
A first-round submission of Kevin Holland in a 180-pound catchweight matchup followed at UFC 279 before his three-round war with Usman in Abu Dhabi at UFC 294.
