Dricus Du Plessis shuts down Khamzat Chimaev with cold stats after fiery dig: "Look at the last +-2.5years"

Dricus du Plessis (left) throws shots at Khamzat Chimaev (right). [Image credit: @dricusduplessis, @khamzat_chimaev on Instagram] — Dricus Du Plessis (left) throws shots at Khamzat Chimaev (right). [Image courtesy: @dricusduplessis and @khamzat_chimaev on Instagram]

UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and top-ranked contender Khamzat Chimaev continue their war of words as their possible clash is still up in the air. While Chimaev is largely considered to be one of the scariest fighters, the champion questions the Chechen-born fighter's legitimacy.

Amid the hype surrounding their upcoming battle - expected to take place at UFC 317 - rumors started to surface that Du Plessis is injured, leaving Chimaev with no opponent.

Dricus Du Plessis promptly responded with data to support his claim. He cited the past two-and-a-half years, where he fought six times, won the title, and then defended it twice. During this time, Chimaev fought three times with as many fight cancellations/rebookings.

Caio Borralho interested in fighting Khamzat Chimaev amid Dricus Du Plessis' injury concerns

Just as quickly as the rumors of Dricus Du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev spread like wildfire, so did talks of it not pushing through start surfacing. According to numerous sources, 'Stillknocks' suffered an injury in training, taking him out of the potential UFC 317 battle with Chimaev.

Needless to say, a few fighters took this as a perfect opportunity to up their stock and try their hand at beating Chimaev. One such individual is the No.6-ranked Caio Borralho, who is on a seven-fight winning streak in the promotion. He wrote on X:

Chimaev responded to Borralho's post via his Instagram story. He posted a screenshot of him choking out Borralho in the gym back when they were still teammates.

About the author

Duane is an expert MMA writer at Sportskeeda with over 10 years of experience working for the likes of Philippine Star, Esquire Philippines, Playboy Philippines, etc. A major in English, he has written over 2000 articles for Sportskeeda section, extensively covering UFC and boxing fights.

Duane is a practicing MMA fighter with a 11-7 record. He is also a Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt and trains Muay Thai. His connection with MMA dates back to 2005, when he turned into a fan after watching Fedor Emelianenko defeat Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic at Pride FC - Final Conflict 2005.

Emelianenko finds himself right at the top of Duane’s Mt. Rushmore of MMA fighters, alongside other big names like Demetrious Johnson, Jon Jones, Georges St-Pierre, and Anderson Silva.

Duane’s love for the sport is reflected in his writings, where he believes in speculating but not insinuating. He uses his intensive knowledge and skills in MMA to provide unique insights to the readers, along with sourcing information only from reliable sources.

Outside of work, Duane enjoys martial arts training, visual arts, film criticism, video games, and creative writing.

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