As the reigning UFC middleweight champion, Alex Pereira has more pressing matters at hand than addressing Khamzat Chimaev’s threats to his title. When asked about the up-and-coming contender, Pereira brushed him off, stating that he will face whoever the UFC puts against him after his upcoming fight against Israel Adesanya in the main event of UFC 287 this Saturday in Miami.

Despite being respectful towards other middleweight fighters such as Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker, Pereira had little to say about Chimaev, claiming that the fighter “ran from everybody.” Chimaev has been vocal about challenging Pereira, but the champion offered to fight him in a light heavyweight bout back in January, which Chimaev declined.

Though Pereira remains focused on defending his middleweight title, he has no intention of moving up to the 205-pound division anytime soon. Despite his imposing size and weight, Pereira has said that he wants to make history in the middleweight division and that he is feeling great at his current weight.

While Chimaev has been making headlines with his proclamations about defeating Pereira, the champion remains unbothered, confident that he will emerge victorious in his upcoming bout against Adesanya.