Dricus du Plessis calls UFC 319 a terrible fight, pushes for Chimaev rematch.
Former UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis has spoken out strongly after his loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319, calling the fight disappointing and saying he wants another shot at the title as soon as possible.
Du Plessis lost his belt to Chimaev in the UFC 319 main event on August 16, 2025, in Chicago. Chimaev dominated the fight with superior wrestling and control, landing overwhelming numbers of strikes and earning a unanimous decision victory to become the new middleweight champion. Judges scored the fight overwhelmingly in Chimaev’s favor after he controlled all five rounds.
After the fight, Dricus Du Plessis admits mental lapse in title loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC and also admitted in earlier statements that he was beaten by a better fighter that night, took responsibility for the loss, and vowed to come back stronger. He praised Chimaev’s skill while expressing his own desire to learn from the defeat and improve.
“I’ll be ready for April,” du Plessis told Fight Forecast. “I would love to be on that April card, the Miami card. There’s no opponent yet, there’s no contract yet, we don’t have any of that. Whoever. Let’s go. I’m ready to go again and get back to my belt as soon as possible. Doesn’t really matter who it is. I would, of course, love for it to be Khamzat and redeem that loss, but for me right now, the next fight is the most important fight of my life.”
“Fighting Khamzat again is what I’m after,” du Plessis said. “Expecting any surprises? No. There’s not going to be any surprises. That is the way he’s going to fight, and if he tries anything different it will be a terrible night, but we all know that. He did what he had to do to win that belt. We can’t hate on him for that. He did what he needed to do. It’s the rules of the game and he did it. So saying that it’s not fair, it is fair, he did what he had to do. Not how I would win my belt or would like to, but that’s what he did. Now it’s my responsibility to go and fix that to stop him from doing that again and get him to fight my fight.”
“It’s always great if you have a guy that comes and fights because it’s my style and it’s what I love to do entertain, to hear the crowd go crazy,” du Plessis added. “But he knows that and that’s why he went for that style. Once again, I understand that it wasn’t the best fight to watch. In fact, it was a terrible fight to watch, but he did what he had to do to win that title and good for him. My responsibility is to stop him from doing that and that’s what I will do.”
“I’ll have my belt back before the end of this year,” du Plessis said when asked for his most optimistic 2026 prediction.
The South African star is already looking ahead. Du Plessis has publicly stated that he is targeting a rematch with Chimaev at UFC 327 on April 11, 2026, in Miami, hoping to redeem himself and reclaim the middleweight title he held before the loss.
Though no official opponent has been announced for his next fight, Du Plessis has made it clear he wants Chimaev again — believing that with adjustments to his strategy he can beat the current champion and get his belt back.
Fans have debated the nature of the UFC 319 fight, with some calling it one of the most lopsided championship bouts due to Chimaev’s near-constant control and high strike volume. Others argue that Du Plessis’ wrestling defense simply wasn’t prepared for Chimaev’s relentless pressure.
