Dricus Du Plessis: Chimaev Doesn’t Realize Power Difference at 185 Pounds

Dricus Du Plessis believes Khamzat Chimaev has yet to feel the strength of a real 185-pounder, and he would absolutely love to do the honors.

“Stillknocks” is slated to challenge Sean Strickland for the middleweight title in the main event at UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto. The booking came as a surprise to some who were expecting Khamzat Chimaev to get the next title shot at middleweight after a majority decision victory over Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 last month.

Du Plessis believes Chimaev still remains the UFC’s next preference for a gold bid at middleweight against the winner of the upcoming UFC 297 title fight. The South African is also excited about the potential matchup, as he wants to show Chimaev what true strength feels like.

“The UFC is probably going to want to do Khamzat,” Du Plessis said in an interview with James Lynch. “He’s a big draw, and they said if he won the fight against Usman he’d get a title shot. That’s a fight I would gladly accept as champion, take out the boogeyman, it would be a massive pleasure.

“He’d try to take me down, and he should. I don’t think [Chimaev] realizes the power difference between 170 and 185. In terms of style, he tries to outpower everybody he fights, because he wants to show how strong he is. If he fights me and he fights that way, he’s going to find out what strength really feels like.”

Chimaev made his move to middleweight against Usman, who was also making his first 185-pound appearance in the Octagon. While the matchup was widely believed to be a title eliminator, an unconvincing majority decision raised questions about Chimaev’s claim to a middleweight title shot. Strickland’s manager, Lance Spaude, claimed that “Borz” was not even brought up in discussions while booking the champ’s UFC 297 clash against Du Plessis.

Meanwhile, Du Plessis is undefeated in six UFC outings — including five finishes — and is coming off a second-round TKO over former champ Robert Whittaker in July.