Overlooked Dricus Du Plessis Lauded as USP of the UFC 319 Khamzat Chimaev Showdown

Despite his imposing reign as the UFC's 185-pound king, Dricus Du Plessis wanted to push himself and sought the dangerous Khamzat Chimaev.

Overlooked Dricus Du Plessis Lauded as USP of the UFC 319 Khamzat Chimaev Showdown

UFC legend thinks Dricus Du Plessis deserves credit (Source: X)

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Cardio, danger of pace, relentless pressure, domination, undefeated stats adds to the legacy of any fighter. Those are but the few elements analysts and peers talk of when mentioning UFC 319 title challenger Khamzat Chimaev. Given all that, one UFC legend thinks Dricus Du Plessis doesn’t get enough credit for welcoming such a challenge at the upcoming PPV.

Talks of a ‘Borz’ vs. Dricus Du Plessis scrapper arose prominently last August. DDP was fresh off defeating Israel Adesanya via a third-round rear-naked choke during his UFC 305 PPV middleweight title fight. He wanted to face the Khamzat Chiamev vs. Robert Whittaker winner as his next title defense.

UFC matchmaking snubbed Chimaev out in favor of justice for Sean Strickland in his last title fight. Hence, the UFC 312 featuring DDP saw a different booking, even though the champ was ready for Chimaev.

The champion has always touted that the undefeated Chimaev was the next best step to overcome and place himself as better than the best. It’s this mentality that makes Daniel Cormier bill that Du Plessis is the high-end selling point of this scrapper that fans are missing out on as a great aspect of the fight.

Let me, let me…tell you one key thing that people are missing in this — and I love this about Du Plessis…He leaves the fight after beating Adesanya, who he had so much history with — that fight was so heavy. he, he goes, ‘I’ll fight anybody’… Right after that, he goes, ‘I want Chimaev next’; Everybody was saying, ‘Well, he needs to win more.’ Every one of the toughest guy in the division. Not Dricus. Dricus looked right down the barrel of the camera and said, ‘I want Chimaev.’

Daniel Cormier on his ‘Good Guy/Bad Guy‘ Podcast (@ESPNMMA)

It is reasonable to conclude that the majority of combatants are not exactly raising hands eagerly to graze with the undefeated Chechen. Whittaker, a perennial UFC 185-pounder, did pitch in, and ‘Borz’ made short work of him with a first-round face crank and clear SOTY top contender.

Meanwhile, DDP is not like most. In an era where champs are predominantly characterized by stalling the division, ‘Stillknocks’ is different. Just like other champions, DDP overcame big brand names and former champs like Adesanya and Sean Strickland, and wanted someone to push him more. It’s a trait even the title challenger had given his props to.

Khamzat Chimaev promises easy ‘smesh and kill’ session but douses respect to Dricus Du Plessis

Dricus Du Plessis enters his stiffest test to date atop the UFC 319 pay-per-view card main event at the home of Chicago Bulls this mid-August. It is safe to say the lead-up has been a charged one, and both are ready for war. In Khamzat Chimaev, DDP faces one of the most high-pressure wrestlers of the sport and has been prepping hard for the challenge.

Khamzat Chimaev praises Dricus Du Plessis for giving nod to title challenge
Khamzat Chimaev praises Dricus Du Plessis for giving nod to title challenge (Source: X)

Time and again, DDP has proved he’s a scrambler. He goes head-first with swings, closing space for that lucky connect to the chin, but also averages 2.55 takedown (TD Avg) with a modest 50% Takedown Accuracy. Those like Gilbert Burns and even Whittaker to an extent bill him to be able to go the distance on the upcoming title fight.

The middleweight champ isn’t one to back down and is always all-in for a rough ride. In a pre-fight interview on The Ariel Helwani Show, the champion even doused some 1/1 legendary mentality ahead of this dangerous title defense.

The South African native wants to snag the promotion’s No.1 Pound-for-pound spot, and citing Michael Jordan, he doused himself in a power-packing inscribed 11-word “best ever will be”. But it’s not these or what he brings to the table that has mattered to Chimaev, but instead the fact that he honored the challenge.

I respect that… it’s good for me! … Not everyone was saying that. A lot [of] guys was running away from me…

Khmazat Chimaev in UFC 319 pre-fight check in’s with ESPN MMA’s Brett Okamoto

For now, the challenge ahead persists. Chimaev submitted Whittaker and edged out former #1 pound-for-pound fighter Kamaru Usman in back-to-back hustles. The surging Chechen phenom opened a -200 favorite on the sportsbooks early on, per BetOnline.Ag. But, along the way, Chimaev can’t help but praise DDP for giving him the chance to accomplish his dreams.

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