UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis didn’t take long to notice Khamzat Chimaev’s dark comments about their likely matchup.
Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev are expected to clash later this year in the middleweight champion’s next title defense. They were initially rumored to headline UFC 317 next month, before recent injury rumors postponed the middleweight matchup for later in the summer.
Du Plessis hasn’t fought since outpointing Sean Strickland in their UFC 312 rematch in February. After a dominant performance against Strickland, du Plessis turned his attention towards Chimaev, who is unbeaten at middleweight since making the full-time weight move.
While there isn’t a lot of outright bad blood between du Plessis and Chimaev, tensions are quickly ramping up as a potential fight announcement looms over the division.
Dricus du Plessis hits back at Khamzat Chimaev’s ‘murder’ teases
A common narrative entering du Plessis vs. Chimaev is that Chimaev will utilize a grappling-heavy approach against the champion, similar to what he did against Robert Whittaker at UFC 308. In a stunning first-round finish, Chimaev submitted Whittaker after taking him down just seconds into the fight last October.
But du Plessis is making wrestling a significant focus of his preparation for Chimaev, in addition to his strengths with his striking. Chimaev is not only not worried about du Plessis challenging his wrestling, but is ready to put an exclamation point in dethroning the current champion.
In a recent conversation with sports journalist Adam Zubayraev, Chimaev reacted to the perception that du Plessis is preparing for a grappling-heavy battle.
“Let them prep for war, I’m prepping for murder,” Chimaev said of du Plessis.
After Chimaev’s comments went viral, it didn’t take long for du Plessis to notice, as he reacted in a recent Instagram comment.
“[LAUGHS] Wow that’s the first time I’ve heard that one! Shakespeare in the house,” du Plessis responded.
Du Plessis heard similar comments from Strickland ahead of their two middleweight title clashes. He defeated Strickland for the belt at UFC 297, before outpointing him in their UFC 312 rematch.
Chimaev is looking to follow up his remarkable run in the UFC Octagon with a world title, after a hyped start to his promotional tenure. Recent wins over Kamaru Usman, Kevin Holland, and Gilbert Burns proved he has what it takes to become a UFC champ.
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Dricus du Plessis cleared up injury rumors in a positive Khamzat Chimaev fight update
Initial reports pointed to du Plessis possibly suffering a shin injury in training that forced the matchmakers to scratch their plans to have him and Chimaev headline UFC 317. But du Plessis recently shut down the rumors and teased a looming fight announcement.
Amidst the rumors, a potential interim title bout between undefeated contenders Caio Borralho and Chimaev was pitched and immediately shut down. Borralho hasn’t fought since a win over Jared Cannonier last year.
Du Plessis called out Alex Pereira in a veiled fashion after his most recent win at UFC 312. But Pereira then lost the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 313, ruining what du Plessis called the ‘biggest payday’ of his career.
For now, it appears that du Plessis vs. Chimaev is firmly in the works for later this year, and du Plessis won’t be sidelined for much longer. As for Chimaev, he’s entering his expected middleweight title shot with brutal intentions.