Khamzat Chimaev has widened his UFC middleweight target list instead of only waiting on a second fight with Sean Strickland.
I'm ready
let me know when you are ready
Sean
Dricus
Nassourdine
Caio— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) August 31, 2026
“I'm ready
let me know when you are ready
Sean
Dricus
Nassourdine
Caio”
Chimaev posted Monday that he is ready, then named Sean Strickland, Dricus Du Plessis, Nassourdine Imavov, and Caio Borralho as possible opponents. The list widens his earlier push for Strickland after UFC 328 and keeps him planted in the MMA News lane instead of the light-heavyweight talk that followed his title loss.
Strickland took the middleweight belt from Chimaev by split decision at UFC 328 in May, handing Chimaev the first loss of his professional MMA career. Chimaev had campaigned for an immediate rematch, but the division has kept moving while Strickland recovers and the UFC maps out the final stretch of the year.
Caio Borralho Answers Chimaev Fast
Borralho did not leave the callout hanging. He answered Chimaev on X and suggested either Madison Square Garden in November or T-Mobile Arena in December, which lines up with the UFC's late-year numbered-event window.
Finally someone called my name! My brother u know I love you, and I'm ready MSG November or T Mobile December! Just let me know
— Caio Borralho (@BorralhoCaio) August 31, 2026
“Finally someone called my name! My brother u know I love you, and I'm ready MSG November or T Mobile December! Just let me know”
The timing is important for Borralho because he has also been pushing toward a return after his own injury layoff. His name has stayed around the contender picture, and Chimaev putting him beside Strickland, Du Plessis, and Imavov gives the Caio Borralho side of the division a clean public opening.
Du Plessis is also part of the equation because Chimaev already beat him to win UFC gold at UFC 319. Strickland later changed the belt picture, while Imavov has remained around the next-title-shot conversation. That is why Chimaev's post works as more than a single rematch demand.
No UFC Fight Is Official Yet
Nothing has been announced by the UFC, so the post is still a public callout rather than a confirmed booking. Still, it gives matchmakers several workable lanes: Strickland if the champion is ready, Imavov if the UFC wants to honor the next-contender argument, Borralho if both sides want a fresh matchup, or Du Plessis if the promotion circles back to previous title history.
Chimaev has also kept a combat date on his calendar outside the Octagon with a September 5 grappling appearance against Tyron Woodley. His latest message, though, points directly back to Khamzat Chimaev and UFC middleweight business.
That makes Borralho's response the cleanest immediate development. Chimaev named four fighters, one of them answered, and the UFC now has another public option if Strickland's timeline or Imavov's case slows the rematch lane for the Sean Strickland title picture.
