Reinier de Ridder has a bold take on the comparisons between Khamzat Chimaev and Dricus du Plessis.
UFC 319 will see Du Plessis put his middleweight belt on the line against the unbeaten Khamzat Chimaev, whose dominant performances over Kamaru Usman and Robert Whittaker paved the way to this title opportunity.
Sporting a flawless 14-0 record, Chimaev represents the toughest test of Du Plessis’ career.
However, De Ridder believes ‘Borz’ is not as challenging an opponent as widely perceived.
Reinier de Ridder discusses why Khamzat Chimaev is a more favourable matchup than Dricus du Plessis
The title fight between Chimaev and Du Plessis comes at a busy time for the UFC middleweight division. Reinier de Ridder recently beat Whittaker to continue his rise up the ranks, while Anthony Hernandez vs Roman Dolidze headlines UFC Vegas 109.
De Ridder is working his way into title contention, though it’s unclear when he’ll get his shot. If he had to choose between facing Chimaev or Du Plessis for the belt, he made his preference clear.
Speaking to TMZ Sports, the Dutchman was asked how he compares the two main event fighters.
“Khamzat would be an easier fight to prepare for I think,” De Ridder said. “There’s more great wrestlers who also have good striking, but who mostly are great wrestlers. Dricus is just all over the place that it’ll be very hard to find a guy who can emulate Dricus.”
“So Khamzat, I think will be easier to prepare for, but still of course, another fight of my life. Both of them will be on the schedule before long.”
The path to a title shot remains crowded in the middleweight division. Caio Borralho is set as the backup for UFC 319 and soon after will headline against Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Paris.
Reinier de Ridder’s potential path to a title shot
The top of the division remains crowded, but De Ridder could still find himself matched up against another big name like Israel Adesanya or Sean Strickland. A bout against the winner of Borralho vs. Imavov could also serve as a No. 1 contender fight.
RDR has made an immediate impact since joining the UFC. Earlier this year, he handed Bo Nickal his first MMA loss by knockout at UFC Des Moines, adding to victories over Kevin Holland and Gerald Meerschaert.
Before joining the UFC, De Ridder was already highly regarded outside the promotion, having won two titles against Aung La Nsang in ONE Championship. He eventually left ONE after consecutive losses to Anatoly Malykhin.
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