February 15, 2025
After the quick UFC 311 victory, Reinier de Ridder is on the fast track with Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev
MMA

After the quick UFC 311 victory, Reinier de Ridder is on the fast track with Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev

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INGLEWOOD, Calif. – If someone told Reinier de Ridder to shoot for the moon if he had a big night at UFC 311, he would have passed the test.

De Ridder (19-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) opened the UFC 311 main card with a stunning submission of Kevin Holland (26-13 MMA, 13-10 UFC) at the Intuit Dome on Saturday. The grappling specialist did exactly what he said he would do – and exactly what Holland said he would be amazed if it happened.

De Ridder, who was also a two-division ONE Championship titleholder prior to his time in the UFC, then used his post-fight press conference to share what he wants to do next after a second UFC win.

De Ridder would welcome a chance at former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker or the highly touted Khamzat Chimaev.

“Khamzat and Whittaker (I’d like to fight),” de Ridder told MMA Junkie after his win. “Khamzat will be cool for a Grapplers matchup – would be cool for everything he’s done. Please – I hope they give me this. It would be great. I can be ready as soon as they are.”

De Ridder also said he would be interested in a fight against the winner of former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Nassourdine Imavov, who will headline UFC Saudi Arabia in two weeks.

One question critics asked de Ridder before his first UFC fight was how good the Dutchman was, considering his success came outside of the UFC. But with back-to-back entries to kick off his promotion run and huge praise, the 34-year-old is hitting his stride.

Check out de Ridder’s full post-fight interview above.

For more information on the card, check out MMA Junkie’s UFC 311 event hub.

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: After a quick UFC 311 win, Reinier de Ridder goes on the fast track with Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev

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