Caio Borralho believes he knows why Dricus du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev has fallen through.
The UFC middleweight champion was expected to defend his belt at UFC 317 on June 28.
However, veteran MMA journalist Kevin Iole recently claimed Dricus du Plessis is injured and therefore unable to face the 14-0 Russian contender during International Fight Week.
Khamzat Chimaev issued a four-word reaction to the rumors that seemingly confirmed his first title fight had collapsed – but there’s been no definitive update from UFC boss Dana White.
- READ MORE: Dricus du Plessis got brutally knocked out in last loss before incredible UFC title charge
Caio Borralho claims Dricus du Plessis is seriously injured
Du Plessis has responded to Chimaev’s X-rated dig and hinted at injury rumors being true.
However, ‘DDP’ hasn’t clarified what ailment he’s dealing with or how long he expects to sidelined for.
Caio Borralho says he’s heard that Du Plessis has broken his shin and will be out for six months.
“About 5 days ago, I found out from a reliable source that Dricus had been injured, but nothing was confirmed,” he said in Portuguese during an interview with AG Fight.
“Then Khamzat himself posted ‘This guy is complete s—‘. Then I saw it, I think they confirmed the injury and this fight won’t happen.
“No one wants to fight Khamzat, I think he’s the guy I have to beat and it will be undeniable to everyone who is the true champion of the category. So I made myself available, called the UFC, said I wanted the fight, that it could be on June 28th, that I was ready, I was already training.
“So I started posting on Twitter and I think this fight will only happen if it’s for the interim belt. If it’s not for the interim belt, I think Khamzat himself won’t accept it.
“And I also heard from another source, a little closer to Dricus’ camp, that it was a more serious injury… he broke his shin or something like that, he’ll be out for about six months.
“That would make it easier for the UFC to put the interim belt on. So I’m waiting for that. I’m very excited.”
Caio Borralho reacts to Khamzat Chimaev sparring clip
Chimaev responded to Borralho’s call out by posting an image of him choking out the Brazilian.
Soon after, footage of Chimaev dominating their apparent sparring sessions began circulating online.
Borralho has now broke his silence to explain the role he previously played in Chimaev’s camp.
“At the time that I went to Khamzat’s training camp, I have no problem to say that I got beaten up because I was helping him,” the 17-1 UFC star told Submission Radio.
“Khamzat had like 10 sparring partners, all of those guys he never came along with them or became friends with them because they would kill each other in training, Khamzat would hurt them, then they would need to leave.
“That was far from a sparring session. That was a video of him drilling positions… He’s just making fun, he knows that we were training, we were filming for the UFC, we were drilling… I didn’t even defend the takedown.”