In developments that will shock very few fans in the MMA world, Khamzat Chimaev has thrown his hat into the Octagon to face Leon Edwards after Jorge Masvidal pulled out of his bout with the Brit due to an undisclosed injury.
Edwards and Masvidal were due to meet on December 11 at UFC 269 in Las Vegas, with the prospect of settling a long-running feud which included an infamous back-stage brawl in London more than two years ago.
But as reported by Brett Okamoto of ESPN on Wednesday, Masvidal is now out of the contest due to injury.
The withdrawal of Miami veteran 'Gamebred' is more misfortune for Edwards, 30, who has been struck by a series of cancelations for varying reasons which has stalled his momentum towards a title tilt.
The number three-ranked welterweight has fought twice this year after sitting out the whole of 2020.
Edwards endured a frustrating no-contest against Belal Muhammad after an accidental eye-poke in March, before picking up a unanimous decision victory over UFC icon Nate Diaz in June.
Prior to that, Edwards had seen a planned bout with rising star Chimaev fall through at the end of last year and again early this year due to Covid infections to both men.
Chimaev was hit particularly hard by the illness, but finally returned at UFC 267 last month to demolish China’s Li Jingliang in the first round.
That was Chimaev’s fourth win in four UFC outings – during which he has remarkably absorbed just one significant strike.
The Chechen-born star now sits at 10th in the 170lbs rankings, and wasted no time in demanding that he be the man to step in and face Edwards in the absence of Masvidal.
"Call UFC, we travel tomorrow," Chimaev is said to have told his manager, adding 'coffin' emojis for good measure.
The turnaround for Chimaev would not appear to be an issue, considering he smashed two opponents in the space of 10 days when exploding onto the UFC scene in Abu Dhabi last year.
Edwards, however, seems to have his sights set much higher.
The Brit, who is undefeated in his last 10 trips to the Octagon, wants his shot at welterweight king Kamaru Usman.
'The Nigerian Nightmare' defended his title in a rematch with Colby Covington last weekend at UFC 268.
"Disappointed but honestly I knew this fraud [Masvidal] didn't want to fight me anyway," tweeted Edwards.
"He was just a stop off on the way to the title. The goal remains the same. Much needed family time now, [Kamaru Usman] I will see you soon."
Usman was the last man to defeat Edwards when the pair met in December 2015, as both were in the nascent stages of their UFC careers.
Chiamaev, though, would be a fan-friendly option for Edwards, and would finally give the Swedish-based fighter the chance he craves to take a bigger scalp in the welterweight fold.
While hammering Li into submission in October, Chiamaev lifted his Chinese rival in the air while telling UFC boss Dana White that he would “kill” the entire roster.
“I said [to Dana White], ‘I am the king here, I am going to stay a long time. I am coming for everybody.’ I said I was going to kill him and I did. He slept,” said the undefeated 27-year-old after choking his Chinese rival unconscious.