Dricus du Plessis does not believe Khamzat Chimaev should get an immediate rematch.
The UFC middleweight contender said a potential Sean Strickland vs. Khamzat Chimaev title fight would be “ridiculous,” arguing there have been no title defenses in that stretch and that Nassourdine Imavov has been waiting in the wings since September.
Du Plessis is speaking from the position of someone who has already been part of the division’s recent title churn. Less than a year ago, Chimaev defeated him by dominant decision to win the 185-pound title. Before that loss, du Plessis had been 9-0 in the UFC and said he had defended his title twice, once against Sean Strickland and once against Israel Adesanya.
Du Plessis on the title picture
Du Plessis made it clear he would prefer to run things back with Chimaev if the matchup eventually comes together, but he does not think that means Chimaev should get another title shot right away.
“Obviously, Khamzat would be the preference,” du Plessis said. “Khamzat would be the preference, but it’s about being the champion. I’m not chasing people, I’m chasing being the best. Khamzat, I’ll get him. If he goes up, eventually I’ll get him there, but if he becomes champion I would prefer to fight him and get that win back, but it’s not something that I’m set on, ‘I hope he wins,’ but he doesn’t deserve another title shot.”
He was even blunter when asked about the idea of Chimaev getting another immediate chance. “The Khamzat rematch is ridiculous, it doesn’t make any sense. If they do it, I mean, it’s ridiculous. It would be crazy,” he said. “Let them do what they need to do. I’ll just fight my way back. After my performance, let my performance speak.”
What comes next for du Plessis
For now, du Plessis is focused on the next fight already on his schedule. This Saturday, he is set to face Kamaru Usman in the UFC Oklahoma City main event.
Du Plessis said he cannot talk too much about the division because he lost his last fight, but he also stressed that he has been ready to return. He said injuries delayed a comeback he expected in April, though he added that he has been training throughout the layoff and does not believe in ring rust, especially after a year away.
“It’s the fight game. Injuries are part of it,” du Plessis said. “I really wanted to fight in April, I couldn’t, I got injured, and the injury was a bit more serious than we originally thought, so it took a little while. But I mean, I’ve been training, I’ve been ready.”
After the recent shakeup at the top of the division, du Plessis is content to keep it simple: let the results decide what happens next, then work his way back to the title picture.
