UFC middleweight contender Reinier De Ridder has shared the mats with both Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev, and he has had his say on their upcoming fight.
On August 16, Khamzat Chimaev will finally fight for a UFC title when he takes on Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight strap at UFC 319 in Chicago.
Ahead of his clash against Du Plessis, Chimaev has become locked into a feud with fellow middleweight contender, Paulo Costa, who returned to the win column with an impressive win at UFC 318 this past Saturday.
The middleweight title fight is one of the most anticipated fights this year, and ahead of it, former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has offered his surprise prediction.
UFC contender offers prediction for title fight after training with Du Plessis and Chimaev
Chimaev hasn’t competed in the Octagon since last October when he brutally crushed Robert Whittaker’s jaw with an extremely impressive first-round submission win.
Since then, rumors whirled that ‘Borz’ was unable to compete in America, which has caused an issue in his career over the last few years.
Despite that, the Chechen now finally gets his chance to fight for a UFC title against arguably the most awkward champion in the promotion.
And ahead of the fight, a former training partner of both fighters, Reinier De Ridder has offered his insightful prediction for the fight.
De Ridder is likely just one win away from fighting for the title himself, as he takes on Whittaker in the UFC Abu Dhabi main event this coming Saturday.
“I’m not sure (who wins), I’m still leaning towards Dricus because of the experience I have training with both of the guys. I just don’t see Khamzat finishing him early and I see Dricus building in the third, fourth and fifth rounds, I see him edging it out but we’ll see,” De Ridder said to Submission Radio.
De Ridder hoping that Chimaev pulls out of UFC 319
With the UFC 319 main event scheduled for just a few weeks after De Ridder’s fight in Abu Dhabi, the Dutch fighter is hoping that Chimaev pulls out of the main event so that he can step in.
‘Borz’ has somewhat of a history of being unreliable for the promotion having withdrawn from several fights during his tenure.
Despite that, ahead of his long awaited title fight, Chimaev changed camps and no longer trains to exhaustion, taking better care of his health.