UFC middleweight contender Caio Borralho believes either Dricus du Plessis or Khamzat Chimaev could be injured ahead of UFC 319.
UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis and undefeated contender Khamzat Chimaev are days away from battling in the UFC 319 main event in Chicago. In one of the biggest fights of the year, Du Plessis will put his belt on the line against arguably the toughest challenge of his title reign.
In case of a last-second issue, Caio Borralho is ready to fill in for either Du Plessis or Chimaev if either is forced off of the main event slot ahead of fight night. Borralho is just weeks away from fighting fellow top contender, Nassourdine Imavov, in a No. 1 contender fight at UFC Paris.
While Borralho is in Chicago and ready for any last-second slipups ahead of UFC 319, he wonders if he was needed because of a lingering issue that either Du Plessis or Chimaev are dealing with.
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Caio Borralho believes Dricus du Plessis or Khamzat Chimaev could be hurt after accepting backup gig
During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Borralho explained why he believes either Du Plessis or Chimaev could be entering UFC 319 fight week with a potentially fight-canceling issue.
“They didn’t say who could get hurt if it’s Khamzat or Dricus, or if there was an issue,” Borralho began. “But I’m suspicious because they said earlier there would be no backup and out of nowhere got one. There’s something going on potentially but I don’t know what it is.
“If we go by the logic, Chimaev has the better chance of pulling out because he’s done that a few times before. We know he trains like crazy so he always gets hurt. But I heard recently that he’s doing great, he’s healthy and has no serious injuries. I don’t know how Dricus is doing. He hasn’t posted much on social media.”
Borralho went on to clarify what concerns him the most about Chimaev’s health ahead of UFC 319.
“The thing that concerns me about Chimaev is his weight. I saw a picture, and he looks freaking huge,” Borralho said.
“We know he sometimes has a hard time making weight. I’m keeping my hands up until I leave the hotel for the arena. Until then, I’m 100 percent locked in on this fight.”
Chimaev missed weight badly ahead of his first main event bout against Nate Diaz at UFC 279. After missing the welterweight limit by 7.5 pounds, forcing him out of the fight with Diaz and demoting himself to the co-main event slot against Kevin Holland.
Following UFC 279, Chimaev made the full-time move to middleweight, and has earned recent wins over Robert Whittaker and Kamaru Usman. Despite being days away from fighting for the middleweight title, Chimaev wants to return to welterweight for the opportunity to become a multi-division champion.
Just days away from UFC 319, Chimaev and Du Plessis came face-to-face for the first time ahead of Saturday, and their interaction has fans concerned.
Fans concerned for Dricus du Plessis after viral face-to-face with Khamzat Chimaev
Du Plessis and Chimaev had a cordial first fight week interaction ahead of UFC 319. But UFC fans pointed to Chimaev’s visible size advantage over Du Plessis as a cause for concern
Despite Du Plessis’s successes during his title reign, few are giving him a chance at stopping Chimaev’s rise at UFC 319. A rising middleweight star believes Chimaev will immediately finish Du Plessis inside the Octagon.
If Du Plessis is victorious this weekend, he’ll likely make a big leap up the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings in handing Chimaev his first-career setback.