Khamzat Chimaev says he wants to fight Nate Diaz, Mike Perry, or Robbie Lawler next

UFC welterweight prospect Khamzat Chimaev says he wants to fight Nate Diaz, Mike Perry, or Robbie Lawler next as he works his way up the 170lbs ladder.

Chimaev had a UFC debut for the ages when he absolutely smoked John Phillips at Wednesday’s UFC on ESPN 13 card in Abu Dhabi. Chimaev took Phillips down right away and beat him up so badly that one judge even scored the first round 10-7 in his favor, one of the rarest scorecards in all of MMA. In the second round, Chimaev made quick work of Phillips and submitted him with a brutal D’arce choke to pick up his first UFC win.

It was an incredible UFC debut and had fans and media buzzing about the potential of Chimaev, who some call “Khabib 2.0” based on his relentless wrestling-heavy style and brutal ground-and-pound. Following the win over Phillips, which was contested at middleweight, Chimaev told the UFC he wants another short-notice fight on Fight Island.

In an interview with TMZ Sports on Thursday, the top welterweight prospect doubled down on wanting to stay active, saying that he intends to move up the welterweight ladder quickly, and called out three veterans of the sport in Diaz, Perry, and Lawler.

“I want to beat more fighters. Who was this guy who hit an old man, Mike Perry? I want to fight him, I don’t like him. I want to smash Nate Diaz. And I want a fight with Robbie Lawler, I want a fight with him also,” Chimaev said.

The prospect said that Perry in particular is the guy he wants to fight the most because of the recent video that saw “Platinum” deck an old man at a bar and knock him out.

“Because he hit old men, it’s not nice, I don’t know, I don’t like this guy. I want to show him real gangster here,” Chimaev said. “I’m not gangster, I kill the gangsters.”

Although Chimaev is just 7-0 in his MMA career, he says that the goal is to fight UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman for the belt within the next two years. In fact, he said he would take the fight right now if the UFC offered it to him.

“This year, if it’s possible, I don’t know. Next year, this year, I don’t know. Two years, maximum, I’m going to take this belt,” Chimaev said.

“If the UFC gives me this challenge (Usman), I can take this today. I would fight him, why not?”

Do you want to see Khamzat Chimaev fight Nate Diaz, Mike Perry, or Robbie Lawler?