THE unstoppable force meets the immovable object in Chicago this weekend as UFC champion Dricus de Plessis defends his middleweight crown against #1 contender Khamzat Chimaev.
The resolute South African title-holder was a champion long before he even set foot inside the Octagon, whilst the Chechnyan assassin is unbeaten and ostensively unstoppable.
Their main event caps an unmissable UFC 319 card that also features British stars Lerone Murphy, the unbeaten featherweight contender, and the human highlight reel Michael ‘Venom’ Page.
STILLKNOCKS
Having signed to the UFC in 2020, Du Plessis has gone on a nine-fight unbeaten campaign straight through some of the biggest names in the division.
He face-cranked the UK’s Darren Till into submission then blasted his way through a trio of former champions in Robert Whittaker, Sean Strickland and Israel Adesanya.
An unorthodox striker and unheralded ground fighter, it took the 31-year-old a minute to get the accolades his skillset deserves.
But a top five pound-for-pound ranking followed shortly after claiming the 185lb belt and ‘Stillknocks’ progression shows no signs of abating.
From African national champion, to conquering the biggest promotion in Europe, now du Plessis is the gold-minted middleweight in the biggest fight league on the planet.
BORZ
Chimaev, however, could well prove to be the champion’s sternest test.
Built in Russia but nurtured in MMA at the acclaimed Allstars Training Centre in Stockholm, Sweden, ‘Borz’ has built a new team for himself in Dubai.
His grappling skills are relentless and precise, his striking accurate and malevolent, but it’s the full package that corroborate Chimaev’s potential. He pieces it all together effortlessly.
Unbeaten in 14 fights, he also landed in the UFC in 2020, winning eight times inside the Octagon and bagging six performance bonuses.
He holds the modern-day UFC record of a 10-day turnaround between wins and enters the Octagon on Saturday on the back of wins over former champs Kamaru Usman and Whittaker.
MARATHON OR SPRINT?
Yet as impressive and irrepressible as both athletes appear, neither man in infallible.
Fans and pundits alike were amused by du Plessis’ unconventional fighting style early into his UFC tenure.
His punches and takedowns would appear sloppy as he struggled to find his second wind in fights. But nose surgery in 2023 appears to have changed all that.
These days Dricus comes firing on all cylinders and nobody is laughing now.
In almost complete contrast, a trip to the hospital almost cost Chimaev his career.
When he debuted in the UFC it wasn’t a case of would he become a champion but when, only for a heavy case of Covid-19 to force him into retirement in 2021.
He naturally managed to fight his way back, but the effects of Long Covid have been clear with uncharacteristically tough moments against Gilbert Burns and Usman.
Heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall aside, Chimaev is likely the most dangerous man on the planet over a single five-minute opening round.
But if he can survive the onslaught, du Plessis’ chances of victory improve exponentially.
A fourth round against Usman would have been a disaster for Chimaev, and Dricus is much bigger and meaner than the ex-welterweight kingpin.
This UFC 319 main event does not go the scheduled five-round distance.
Chimaev would rather be finished than lose on points and whilst he will, as always, start like a rocket ship and have the champ in all kinds of trouble, Dricus won’t go quietly.
Khamzat’s lack of championship round experience will ensure fatigue takes hold and when it does he find out just how painful life is at fight sports’ summit.
TIP: Murphy & MVP – an all-Brit Points Victory Double
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