Khamzat Chimaev silenced his critics and proved his doubters wrong by submitting former champ Robert Whittaker in their UFC 308 clash last Saturday. His hype, which had gotten somewhat derailed due to his inactivity over the past year seems to be back on track as he utterly dominated Whittaker, getting him out in the very first round.

And while he made about twice the money Whittaker did in base salary for their clash, there was one department where ‘The Reaper’ outdid Chimaev. After all, Whittaker made $21,000 in Compliance Pay, three times more than the $6,000 ‘Borz’ got. For the unversed, Compliance Pay is paid out by Venum, the UFC’s official outfitting partner, based mainly upon the number of fights a fighter has had in the UFC.

In addition, a reigning champion receives $42,000 in Compliance Pay, while their challenger receives $32,000, regardless of how many appearances they have made in the UFC octagon. Whittaker, of course, made his twenty-third appearance in the octagon, while Chimaev has fought only eight times in the UFC, hence the disparity in their Compliance Pay.

However, with his UFC 308 victory, the UAE-based fighter has virtually regained his official #1 title contender status. ‘Borz’ had earned this status after last year’s Abu Dhabi PPV card, only to lose it by turning down a title clash this January due to a broken hand. But who he will ultimately face for the 185-pound gold remains to be seen.

Khamzat Chimaev one step from middleweight gold after whooping Robert Whittaker at UFC 308

Khamzat Chimaev called for a clash with reigning middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis next. But with Dana White having already confirmed that ‘DDP’ will rematch former champion Sean Strickland next, ‘Borz’ will have to wait and see who the winner of that fight is.

Unless, of course, Dana White goes back on his word and decides Strickland would be the one who has to wait and have Chimaev scrap it out against the South African. This is not out of the realm of possibility given how ‘Borz’ annihilated the legendary ‘Bobby Knuckles’ at UFC 308. And even Du Plessis is seemingly salivating at the prospect of a Chimaev clash, having warned the Chechnya native in a tweet that he “can’t wait to take your [Chimaev’s] 0.” 

While Strickland and Du Plessis’ first encounter at UFC 297 this January was a technical striking masterclass and is expected to be more of the same in the rematch, fans are expecting Du Plessis-Chimaev to be much more action-filled. And Dana White may well decide that that is the fight fans need to see first. What are your thoughts on the UFC 308 clash between Khamzat Chimaev and Robert Whittaker? Is Chimaev next in line for the 185lbs gold? Let us know in the comment section below!