Former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub believes Dricus Du Plessis can ‘go for three belts’ if he beats Khamzat Chimaev.
Du Plessis makes his third defence of the middleweight title against Chimaev on August 19, and Schaub believes the champion can make history across three divisions if he overcomes the undefeated Russian.
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‘Stillknocks’ outpointed Sean Strickland to retain his belt at UFC 312 in FebruaryCredit: Getty
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The 31-year-old from South Africa has lost just twice in 25 pro MMA boutsCredit: Getty
The pair headline UFC 319 at the United Center in Chicago, with Briton Lerone Murphy battling debutant Aaron Pico in the co-main event.
Du Plessis claimed gold for the first time in Dana White‘s promotion by outpointing Sean Strickland at UFC 297 in January last year.
Seven months later, he defended it against former champion Israel Adesanya, and has since retained it once again by dominating Strickland in a rematch.
Should he defeat Chimaev, who is undefeated in 14 career MMA bouts, du Plessis will cement his name as a UFC great.
However, Schaub believes the 31-year-old from South Africa can go above and beyond if he gets past Chimaev.
The ex-UFC heavyweight was asked on the Jaxxon podcast what he thinks about fighters moving up and down between divisions to challenge for various titles.
“I think for Islam [Makhachev] it made sense,” Schaub responded.
“For Topuria, he had some work to do, but for Makhachev, it made sense to jump up to [welterweight].
Makhachev vacated the UFC lightweight title in May to move up a division and fight for the belt.
His next fight has since been confirmed by UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov, who stated that Makhachev will face welterweight king Jack Della Maddalena at Madison Square Garden in November.
UFC Middleweight Rankings
Champion: Dricus Du Plessis
Nassourdine ImavovSean StricklandKhamzat ChimaevIsrael AdesanyaReinier De RidderCaio BorralhoRobert WhittakerJared CannonierRoman DolidzeAnthony HernandezBrendan AllenPaulo CostaMarvin Vettori Abus MagomedovRoman Kopylov
Topuria, meanwhile, was crowned the UFC lightweight champion in June, having previously fought for and won the title at featherweight.
“[Makhachev] can definitely capture [the lightweight and welterweight title].
“[Middleweight is] a different animal because you have guys like [du Plessis] and Khamzat.
“I think whoever wins [between] Khamzat and DDP, whoever wins that can go for three belts.
“DDP’s bigger than Khamzat, so light heavyweight, he’s probably a light heavyweight naturally.
“So it makes sense for DDP to go to light heavyweight. Heavyweight’s not as far a stretch for him. DDP’s a big boy.”
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Du Plessis has held the middleweight title for almost two years nowCredit: Getty
Du Plessis will tip the scales at no more than the middleweight championship weight of 185 lbs for his bout with Chimaev.
He reportedly walks around at least 210 lbs, so he would have no issues in fighting for the light heavyweight belt at 205 lbs next.
At that weight, du Plessis would also be ready to compete at heavyweight, given the minimum weight to fight in White’s heaviest division is 205 lbs.
What is Dricus du Plessis’ UFC record?
Du Plessis boasts a professional MMA record of 23-2, having dominated the welterweight and middleweight scene at EFC and KSW before his run in the UFC.
‘Stillknocks’ is on an 11-fight winning streak in MMA, with his last defeat coming at the hands of Roberto Soldic at KSW 45 in London seven years ago.
His only other defeat in the sport was a submission loss to Garreth McLellan at South African promotion EFC in August 2014.
Dricus Du Plessis’ training partner backs UFC champion to finish Khamzat Chimaev ‘under three rounds’ with secret weapon
If the South African decided to move up and win titles at both light heavyweight and heavyweight, he would become the first man to have held three titles in UFC history, as well as the first in the world under traditional MMA weight classes.
Anatoly Malykhin achieved the feat at ONE Championship in March last year, but the Singapore-based promotion use slightly different weight rules.
Oktagon MMA’s heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Will Fleury is another fighter looking to achieve the feat of MMA’s first-ever three-division king under the traditional rules.
Meanwhile, du Plessis’ main training partner, Mark Hulme, has backed his friend to score a violent win over Chimaev at UFC 319.