Michael Bisping: Dricus Du Plessis being an underdog vs. Khamzat Chimaev is 'insane'

USA Today

19-05-2025

Michael Bisping is baffled by the odds for the middleweight title fight between Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319.
Dricus Du Plessis (23-2 MMA, 9-0 UFC) defends his belt against Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) in the Aug. 16 main event at United Center in Chicago (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
Du Plessis has opened up as an underdog against unbeaten Chimaev, which Bisping thinks makes no sense based on both fighters' resumes.
"The fact that they've got Dricus Du Plessis as the underdog is insane," Bisping said on his YouTube channel. "The man can wrestle, he's got great jiu-jitsu, he's big for the weight class, and more importantly, he has a gas tank. He has had no problems going five rounds. The two times Khamzat went to a decision was when he couldn't get the finish in the first or second round.
"That's when Gilbert Burns started to take over. That's when Kamaru Usman had a lot of success and settled the score, and it almost came out as a draw. And now it's not three rounds, it's five rounds. The way that Khamzat Chimaev fights is the way that he fights. He ain't going to change. If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Despite the adversity that Chimaev faced in his wins against Gilbert Burns and Kamaru Usman, he's yet to taste defeat. Bisping thinks that may end up proving detrimental to Chimaev as he heads into his first title fight.
"When you lose fights, you say, 'Well, I never really lost, it was a chance to learn,' and that is true," Bisping said. "When you do lose, you address some things. You address your preparation, you address your weight cut, you address your diet. You address all kinds of sh*t that you might have been doing wrong, and one of those things might be that I address the fact that I don't pace myself. As I said, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. He's going to go full steam ahead. Khamzat Chimaev is going to go right at him. He ain't going to f*ck about.
"He's going to swing for the fences, he's going to pick him up, he's going to try and slam him down, he's going to go berserk, he's going to go mental, and that's what we love about him. That's why we can't wait to see this fight. But if he doesn't get him out of there in the first round or the second round, and he's starting to gas come Round 3 and Round 4 and Round 5, he is looking to be anywhere else but in the middle of the octagon in the United Center. Dricus Du Plessis is going to take over. And that man is a big, powerful son of a b*tch, and he is a finisher as well."