Robert Whittaker looked forward to a fight with Khamzat Chimaev, the number one contender, before the Chechen fighter’s injury. He will now face Ikram Aliskerov, an unranked middleweight, whom many, including Renato Moicano, feel is a tougher matchup for “The Reaper.”
Aliserkov won first-round finishes in his two fights in the UFC. Moreover, he has only lost once in MMA to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC Brave CF 23. Even though he won a first-round knockout, it was Chimaev’s most challenging fight before he joined the UFC.
Renato Moicano and Gilbert Burns Favor Aliskerov’s Grappling in Whittaker Bout
Renato Moicano and Gilbert Burns are hosts of the Show Me The Money podcast. The latest podcast episode previewed the fight between Ikram Aliskerov and Robert Whittaker. Both, particularly Moicano, were high on Aliskerov’s chances of springing an upset.
“If you watch the fight, Khamzat Chimaev versus Ikram Aliskerov before the knockout, Chimaev tried several takedowns and the guy was just defending. If you look at his grappling, yeah, I think he could be even better than Chimaev in grappling. I think that’s going to be a hard fight for Robert Whittaker,” said Moicano on the podcast.
Gilbert Burns also agreed with the assessment. Burns pointed out that Aliskerov’s fight against Chimaev was at 180 lbs. He felt Aliskerov would have extra energy in a 185-fight against Whittaker, thus having an advantage.
Burns also revealed he saw Aliskerov sparring with Johnny Eblen, the Bellator middleweight champion. Gilbert Burns was impressed by Aliskerov’s sparring session with Eblen and other high-level grapplers.
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