Why Reinier de Ridder favors UFC champion Dricus Du Plessis over Khamzat Chimaev
Reinier de Ridder has a unique perspective on the UFC middleweight title fight between champion Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev.
UFC CEO Dana White confirmed that Du Plessis (23-2 MMA, 9-0 UFC) will defend his title against Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC), but a date and venue are yet to be announced. De Ridder (19-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC), a rising contender and former ONE dual-champion, has shared the mat with both fighters in the past and provided some insight on how he sees the matchup playing out.
"I've trained a bit with both of those guys, and it's an interesting matchup," De Ridder told MMA Junkie. "It's a good one, but looking at the way Dricus has been fighting guys, the way Dricus has been finishing guys over the last couple of years, and if you look at Khamzat's fights, I think this must be in Dricus' favor.
"He's a motherf*cker with everything he throws. He's very, very game. He keeps going for five rounds, and I don't see Khamzat getting him out of there quickly. I don't see Khamzat shooting, getting to his back right away like he did in his last fight. I might be wrong, but I feel Dricus should have the better odds in this one."
De Ridder hopes he'll draw a top-ranked opponent if he can get past undefeated wrestling standout Bo Nickal (7-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in Saturday's UFC on ESPN 67 (ESPN2, ESPN+) co-main event at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Why Reinier de Ridder favors Dricus Du Plessis over Khamzat Chimaev
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