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While the UFC hasn't made an official announcement, Khamzat Chimaev is expected to be the next challenger for Dricus du Plessis' middleweight throne. The matchup has divided the MMA world, especially as both men have never tasted defeat in the octagon.
Chimaev, though, has been perfect throughout his entire career and is more than confident in his chances against the South African star. But du Plessis is perhaps the only middleweight who can match, even exceed, his physicality. So, what would a fight between the two look like?
Who would win?
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Khamzat Chimaev: A fighter analysis
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Dricus du Plessis is a difficult fight to predict, but there is no doubt about either man's ability. Chimaev, after all, is undefeated for a reason, as is the case with why du Plessis is the UFC middleweight champion. With 'Borz,' the main threats are his wrestling and grappling.
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Throughout his career, Chimaev has alternated between specializing in the clinch and simply blasting through an opponent with a double-leg takedown. He applies immediate pressure at the start of a fight, all in a bid to get his opponent uncomfortable enough to lash out with power punches to force him to back off.
Check out Khamzat Chimaev's wrestling:
At the very moment his foe's hips are squared, Chimaev dives under their punch with freakish speed, securing easy double-leg takedowns. If the initial shot is stuffed, he latches onto his opponent and begins chain-wrestling, often rising into the clinch and lifting them off the mat.
He then bumps his hips into his opponent's to off-balance them and slam them to the mat. It's a suffocating approach, and he pours every bit of his energy into everything he does. On the mat, he's exceptional at controlling his foe, using wrist-ties, tripods, while triangling the legs when needed.
In doing so, he raises his opponent's ankles off the mat, preventing them from threatening with submissions while he sets up his own. He also uses ground-and-pound, forcing his opponent to turn away, exposing their back for him to mount. On the feet, he is very powerful, but fairly basic.
He throws a nice front kick used to create openings for his punches or takedowns by targeting the body to straighten his foe's posture. The Chechen star doesn't move his head off the center line, but keeps his hands up... until he tires. He doesn't frequently use his jab, and his right hook is his main weapon.
Check out Khamzat Chimaev knocking out Ikram Aliskerov:
He does have a crushing uppercut and uses it to split his opponent's guard, as Ikram Aliskerov found out. The drawbacks to 'Borz's' style revolve around discipline and cardio. He gassed out badly against Gilbert Burns and a very short-notice Kamaru Usman.
Once he tires, his discipline dives off a cliff, and he starts dropping his hands and heads into brawls. Furthermore, the physicality he shows in round one falters quickly. But what of the South African?
Dricus du Plessis: A fighter analysis
Dricus du Plessis is brutally strong, big, and powerful, just like Khamzat Chimaev, but they are vastly different fighters. For one, the middleweight champion is a more active switch-hitter, especially with his low kicks and body kicks, frequently switching stances, which is also a feature of his boxing.
He establishes rhythms to break them later. This was noted by Israel Adesanya, who the South African submitted at UFC. After failing to keep 'The Last Stylebender' pinned to the mat, du Plessis responded to an advancing Adesanya, who had barely gotten back to his feet, by swinging for a wild right hook.
It backed Adesanya up immediately, affording 'DDP' some breathing room. In short, he is a difficult striker to predict, and his off-beat striking allows him to land thunderous punches when his opponent least expects them. Unfortunately, this comes at a cost.
Check out Dricus du Plessis' highlights against Robert Whittaker:
Du Plessis often trips over his own feet, given how wildly he lunges into combinations, and his defense consists of little more than a high guard, which obscures his vision. As a wrestler, he is powerful but clumsy. He isn't adverse to quite literally diving at his opponent's feet and off-balancing them.
He will also attempt trips from odd angles that end up working, though occasionally failing, due to his strength. Once he gets the fight to the ground, though, he is vicious. His ground-and-pound is seismic, and he's an all-around mean grappler on the mat, pressing his weight into his foe in just the right spots to make it rough.
The South African also cranks on whatever he can. From a submission standpoint, he loves threatening with the rear-naked choke, but will settle for face cranks if need be, which has twice earned him the win in the UFC. So, can he beat Chimaev, with whom he has an opponent in common?
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Dricus du Plessis: The prediction
Khamzat Chimaev will likely take Dricus du Plessis down in round one, but struggle to finish the only fighter he may not be stronger than. His gas tank is poor, and after a stellar first round, he will begin to tire, and du Plessis will eventually take over to win, likely via late TKO.
