Reinier de Ridder has no shortage of middleweight contenders looking to fight him – but he is not bothered by one MMA star in particular.
After beating Robert Whittaker by a razor-thin split decision, the Dutch fighter has taken both flak for the result of the fight and praise for how he was able to take some of the Australian’s best shots.
Now, as the fifth-ranked contender in the UFC, he may soon have an opportunity to fight for the world title against the winner of Dricus Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev.
The former two-division ONE champion will need to see the result of Saturday’s Fight Night between Nassourdine Imavov and Caio Borralho, to see exactly whom he needs to compete against for his shot.
Reinier de Ridder rips into UFC star Paulo Costa after callout
While he looks towards the other four contenders above him in the division, he has received a challenge from the Brazilian Paulo Costa, who recently went three rounds with Roman Kopylov.
However, his response may not have been exactly what Costa would have wanted to hear.
Speaking to Inside Fighting, he said: “He’s a funny dude. It would lead to a nice press conference and a nice build-up, but I don’t give a f- – – what he says. You can call me whatever you want to call me.
“Maybe one day (we’ll fight). But at the moment, I don’t think he’s there. I don’t think he’s at my level, though he did do very well in his last fight.”
Reinier analysed where ‘Borrachinha’s’ strengths lie based on his other fights, but reiterated he still has a long way to go before facing him.
“He does pretty well against southpaws with the body kick and the straight right hand,” de Ridder explained.
“So, he’s alright, but I think he has some work to do first.”
One stat against Robert Whittaker shows why Reinier de Ridder and Paulo Costa may be a mismatch
‘The Reaper’ has faced both men in the Octagon before and has a victory over the Brazilian in their three-round fight.
Interestingly, he threw 175 and landed 95 more significant strikes against Costa than he did in his last bout against the ‘Dutch King’.
He caught his rival with 25 fewer attacks in the UFC Abu Dhabi bout and landed a knockdown, but the Dutchman was more effective as he landed more than double the strikes of his opponent (192).
It suggests that the erratic 34-year-old may have his hands full against a more effective, top-five ranked striker.