UFC 319 Preview
The UFC is invading the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on Saturday, August 16th for UFC 319. The main event will be in the middleweight division between champion Dricus du Plessis and undefeated challenger #3 Khamzat Chimaev.
The champion has won 12 straight and most recently defeated Sean Strickland by unanimous decision at UFC 312 in a rematch. The victory was his second defense of the title and it solidified him as the best middleweight in the world, for now.
The South African fighter is ready for another chance to prove he is the best. “I love to be the main attraction. I love to be ‘the guy,’ because that’s what it means to be champion, not only getting in there and fighting, it’s about what you’re doing outside of the Octagon, what you’re doing leading up because, whether you like it or not, it’s part of the job,” said du Plessis.
While the pundits talk about Chimaev’s ascension in the UFC, du Plessis wants to remind everyone that he also had the same path to a title as the challenger, if not quicker . “My rise was a bit quicker than his,” Du Plessis said. “I made my debut after him, I’m on my third title defense…
“I’m the world champion. He hasn’t fought a world champion. He’s fought a former world champion, but he hasn’t fought a world champion. He’s fought at middleweight on 10 days’ notice, he’s fought Robert Whittaker, which was obviously a great performance that earned him this title shot, but if you look at the size difference, just take that into consideration between me and a guy like Robert Whittaker. Now he’s coming into this fight for five rounds. I’ve proven that I can go crazy for one round, or I can go crazy for five rounds.”
While du Plessis may seem confident, he has much respect for Chimaev. “He is an incredible fighter,” Du Plessis said. “Nobody’s been able to beat him. It’s only 14 fights but being a title challenger in the UFC and no one’s been able to figure him out, that’s impressive.
“I’m really happy I’m competing against him because I want to be the guy that beats the best of the best. Up until now in my career, I don’t have any cans that I fought. I don’t have fights on my resume where, as a champion, I’m trying to duck. I want to fight the best of the best because that’s how I’m going to prove I’m the greatest to ever do this.”
Chimaev has been dominant in the UFC, but du Plessis believes he is being underestimated as a champion. “Trying to figure out my fight style, that’s going to be hard because I’m not 100 percent how it works,” Du Plessis said. “It’s going to be hard for people to figure this out. Whatever I’m doing, it is calculated, but I don’t fight with a system. I fight to what my opponent is doing, and I believe that’s the future of the sport. That’s what makes you a champion: adapting to whatever you see and doing what you have to do, and I think that’s what makes me different.”
“I think my power gets overlooked a lot of times,” Du Plessis continued. “Physical strength and punch power. Even with him, maybe he punches really hard. The one thing that sets me apart from every single person on the roster and definitely at my weight is the will to win and refusal to give up. There’s no man that can break me. Mentally, I will never break. That is what sets me apart and that’s what makes me a world champion.”
Aside from two wins over Strickland, du Plessis has key wins over Isreal Adesanya, Robert Whittaker, Derek Brunson, Darren Till and Brad Tavares. Chimaev has been considered the top title threat in two weight classes for the last four years. If du Plessis can find a way to win, it will reset the middleweight division and prove that du Plessis is on a level all his own at 185 pounds.
Chimaev is undefeated and is 8-0 in the UFC. He is coming off a first round submission win over former champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 in October. The Russian fighter burst on the scene when he made his UFC debut 2020 and collected two dominant victories in just 10 days.
How does the 31-year-old feel heading into his first shot at a title? “I feel good,” Chimaev said. “I feel amazing. I feel like I feel.”
Does Chimaev have a prediction on how he will win? “I don't know,” Chimaev said. “We'll see in the cage.”
While he seems to be all business and a man of few words, Chimaev believes his time is now. “I can't say (how it will feel); I’ve never been champ,” Chimaev said. “I know now is my time to be a champ, so I can tell after.”
Aside from his last victory over Whittaker, Chimaev also has key wins over Kamaru Usman, Kevin Holland, Gilbert Burns and Li Jingliang. If he defeats du Plessis it will open up a world of possibilities in the middleweight division. How he wins will determine if his first defense of the title will be a rematch with du Plessis or a fight with #1 Nassourdine Imavov or potentially UFC 319 alternate #6 Caio Borralho.
The rest of the main card:
Aaron Pico -195 vs. Lerone Murphy +165 featherweights
Carlos Prates -260 vs. Geoff Neal +210, welterweights
Michael Page -180 vs. Jared Cannonier +150, middleweights
Kai Asakara -300 vs. Tim Elliot +240, flyweights
ESPN+ Prelims:
Baisangur Susurkaev -950 vs. Eric Nolan +625, middleweights
Michal Oleksiejczuk -220 vs. Gerald Meerschaert +180, middleweights
Loopy Godinez -150 vs. Jessica Andrade +125, women's strawweights
Chase Hooper -330 vs. Alexander Hernandez +260, lightweights
Edson Barboza -160 vs Drakkar Klose +135, lightweights
Karine Silva -230 vs. Dione Barbosa +190, women's flyweights
Alibi Idiris -455 vs. Joseph Morales +350, flyweights
