"He won't be the first champ that I finish" - Reinier de Ridder is not intimidated by Andre Galvao's credentials

Reinier de Ridder has shown time and again that he is one of the best grapplers in MMA. With that in mind, his confidence continues to ooze ahead of his bout with Andre Galvao.

'The Dutch Knight' is undefeated in 15 MMA bouts, but he’s stepping out of his comfort zone by challenging Galvao to a submission grappling bout at ONE X on March 26.

Galvao is a multi-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu and submission wrestling world champion who signed with ONE Championship late last year to compete in both submission grappling and MMA. He will make his debut at the promotion’s 10-year anniversary show in response to de Ridder’s challenge.

Since they will compete in Andre Galvao’s world on Saturday, de Ridder was asked if he would be interested in competing against Galvao in an MMA bout next time around during the ONE X press conference.

The two-division MMA champion responded:

“MMA rules isn’t important right now. The only thing I’m focused on right now is this match. He is indeed a legend of the grappling game, and I’m very happy for this opportunity. He’s stepping into my world, into the cage. Make no mistake, I’m very confident. I’ll be hunting him from the opening seconds, and he won’t be the first champ I finish”

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Andre Galvao aiming to compete in MMA in late 2022

Andre Galvao’s bout with Reinier de Ridder is a pleasant surprise for fans who expected to see him for the first time at the ADCC 2022 in September. He's set for a huge matchup with his rival and fellow ONE Championship athlete Gordon Ryan.

During the same press conference, Galvao was asked if his debut could open his doors to an MMA match, perhaps even against Ryan, who is also signed to compete in both submission grappling and MMA.

Andre Galvao answered:

“I will focus on this fight right now, 100%. But definitely, I want to fight MMA here at ONE, for sure. Toward the end of the year, you guys will see me with MMA gloves fighting under MMA rules.”

Galvao owns a record of five wins against two losses in MMA, with his last fight happening way back in 2010. Ryan, who is yet to make his debut, both in MMA and in ONE Championship, could be an interesting first match. Their heated rivalry would guarantee an intense showdown and their relative inexperience in MMA could level the playing field for both of them.

However, that’s for the future. For now, Ryan and fans from around the globe can enjoy watching Galvao do his thing against de Ridder at ONE X: Part I on March 26, which starts at 1:00PM SGT.