Stillknocks vs the Russian machine — Chimaev has point to prove against unbeatable Du Plessis

Dricus du Plessis, South Africa’s middleweight mixed martial arts (MMA) superstar, will face one of the toughest tests of his career when he faces off against Russian phenom Khamzat Chimaev.

The title bout takes place early on Sunday, 17 August (South African time) as the main event of UFC 319. It is being held at the United Center in Chicago.

Du Plessis has gone into every one of his nine fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as the underdog, bar his title defence against Sean Strickland, and come out with his hand raised by the referee.

With each new opponent placing a new repertoire of skills in front of the rampaging South African the sentiment remains the same: “This time it’s different” and “this time he will lose.” But, by virtue of first scaling the UFC middleweight rankings and earning a title shot, then bludgeoning the belt off Strickland and defending it twice more against Israel Adesanya and Strickland, Du Plessis has demonstrated that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Chimaev, though, is one of the more terrifying fighters in any division of the UFC and a deserved title contender. The Russian, who has a penchant for grappling and wrestling, is also undefeated since entering the UFC in 2020, although he has spent most of his time in the welterweight division.

Chimaev is a finishing machine. Only two of his eight UFC fights have gone to decision. He has finished an incredible five fights in the first round and another, his debut fight in the organisation against John Phillips in 2020, ended in a trademark Chimaev submission.

In the two fights he failed to finish – against Gilbert Burns (in 2022) and Kamaru Usman (in 2023) – that went to decision, Chimaev only just hung on and won based on the damage he did in the first two rounds.

His ability to fight through three rounds has been questioned. And with his UFC 319 fight against Du Plessis set for five rounds, like all title fights, it will be a weakness that the South African must exploit.

Weighty matters

The size of the two fighters will also play a big role in determining a mental advantage before they step into the octagon.

Du Plessis is one of the bigger middleweights in the division and recently confirmed that he weighs between 102kg and 105kg. That’s when he’s not at fight camps, where his main focus is putting on muscle and not strengthening muscle endurance.

That’s about 20kg more than his expected weight at the weigh-in this coming week. The upper limit of the division is set at 83.9kg.

The weigh-in takes place about 36 hours before the fighters meet in the ring. In that time Du Plessis will look to refuel, be as hydrated as possible and get into his ideal fighting shape for when he throws his first jab or teep (a front or “push-kick”). His body shape will visibly change as he puts on about 5kg of water weight again.

Chimaev is on the opposite end of the weight spectrum. He has mostly fought in the welterweight division, one lighter than middleweight, which has an upper weight limit of 77.1kg.

But he was a big welterweight and often struggled to make weight. He lost his chance at a maiden main fight at UFC 279 because he failed to make weight, coming in 3.4kg overweight, and his opponent, Nate Diaz, refused to fight him.

Instead, Chimaev fought and trounced Kevin Holland in a 180-pound (about 82kg) catchweight bout.

Chimaev’s only two UFC fights at middleweight, since moving up after the Holland fight, have been against Usman and then in a title contender-confirming fight against former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in October 2024.

Whittaker barely laid a finger on Chimaev, who shot low in the opening 15 seconds and held on to the former champion – as well as control of the fight – for three-and-a-half minutes before he broke the Australian’s jaw. It was a brutal assault on one of the great fighters in the division.

The style of the victory is precisely what made Du Plessis want the fight against Chimaev, after he defeated Strickland for a second time earlier this year. Chimaev can clearly brawl with the bigger boys, but Du Plessis is the biggest of the lot and questions remain about whether the Russian can go for five rounds without blowing his gas tank.

Unconventional coach

Du Plessis is already in Chicago to acclimatise to the conditions and adjust to the time zone difference. This follows an eight-week-long training camp at the CIT Performance Institute in Pretoria, where he trains with coach Morné Visser.

He has been with Visser since his MMA journey started in South Africa’s organisation: the Extreme Fighting Championship.

Visser’s style is unconventional. The legendary coach, who also coaches some of the country’s best fighters in Cameron Saaiman, Mark Hulme and Justin Clarke, has resorted to using a Taser to ensure his fighters listen to his instructions.

In any other environment this behaviour would be considered barbaric, but controlled savagery is encouraged in the octagon – and Du Plessis exemplifies that to a tee. His unorthodox style, combined with kicks and punches that don’t flow to the expected rhythm, have seen him topple fighters he was expected to lose against.

The main event at UFC 319 largely carries those same expectations from supporters, with Chimaev’s reputation exceeding the grind the 31-year-old South African has put in to conquer the division.

If Du Plessis succeeds, another opponent with an even bigger expectation to topple the champion will be thrust in front of him – as the theme of his undefeated reign has gone.

Regardless, Du Plessis has pushed forward at every challenger who has stepped his way regardless of the size of their reputation. His biggest short-term challenge, however, is making it past the first round against Chimaev. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.