Former UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis says he is not interested in a rematch between Sean Strickland and Khamzat Chimaev.
Strickland pulled off a major upset at UFC 328 in May when he defeated Chimaev via split decision to win the UFC middleweight title. Since then, Chimaev has been clamouring for a rematch, despite the fact that he never once successfully defended his middleweight belt after winning it from du Plessis last summer at UFC 319. While UFC president Dana White has not yet confirmed if the world’s leading MMA promotion will book the rematch, he has admitted they are thinking about it, and du Plessis is not a fan if that’s the case.
It’s because of the lack of title defenses that du Plessis thinks this potential rematch is a joke.
Dricus du Plessis Doesn’t Want Strickland vs. Chiamev 2
Speaking to Submission Radio in a recent interview ahead of his fight this Saturday against Kamaru Usman at UFC Oklahoma City, du Plessis explained why he is not into a rematch between Strickland and Chimaev.
“Between Sean and Khamzat, there is no title defenses. I defended my title twice. The Khamzat rematch is ridiculous. It doesn’t make any sense. If they do it, it is what it is. It will be crazy, but let them do what they need to do. I’ll just fight my way back. After my performance, let my performance speak. That’s the thing. Right now, I don’t have anything to say. I can’t really say anything because I got beaten in my last fight. You can’t really say too much, but the fight’s five days away. I’ll do my talking there, and I’ll prove once again why I am the best in the world,” du Plessis said (via Bloody Elbow).
Du Plessis is obviously miffed since he had two successful title defenses against Strickland and Israel Adesanya when he was the UFC middleweight champion, but after he lost to Chimaev, he did not get an immediate rematch.
The thing is, the UFC is all about booking the biggest fights possible, so if they feel like Strickland vs. Chimaev 2 is the biggest UFC middleweight title available, then they’ll book it, even though du Plessis is correct in saying that Chimaev doesn’t deserve it based on merit since he did not once successfully defend his belt.
Dricus du Plessis Returns at UFC Oklahoma City
This Saturday, du Plessis steps back into the Octagon for the first time since the Chimaev loss when he battles Usman in the main event of UFC Oklahoma City. Du Plessis is a sizeable favorite to win this bout despite coming off that one-sided loss to Chimaev, as he is significantly younger than Usman and also a natural middleweight, while Usman has spent most of his MMA career at welterweight.
If du Plessis wants to get back into the UFC middleweight title mix, then this is obviously a must-win fight, as an impressive victory could potentially propel him past Chimaev and into a trilogy bout against Strickland, whom he has already defeated twice.
Dricus du Plessis Not Interested in Strickland vs. Chimaev Rematch