The most awaited fight Dricus Du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev. In other terms, I will present it to you as “Stillknocks vs the Borz the wolf”. The irony of the name Still Knocks is that Du Plessis was named after a harmful drug substance. Why? Because he puts his opponent to sleep like the Stilnox. And I just don’t even want to give an intro for Chimaev. The only wolf that tears the opponent down with a takedown in just the first round. Imagine training for 200 days and going through an intense cut. Being inside a blanket, trying to cut the half-pound weight just to make sure you don’t miss the weight. In the end, you end up in a cage where the Borz takes you down with wrestling and gives guillotine. Be the one who gets daily updates on UFC and MMA updates and predictions.
Everyone needs a mouth guard to protect the upper teeth. When you enter the octagon with Chimaev UFC game, you’d better put a guard for both teeth as well. Robert Whittaker learned it the hard way. Imagine Khamzat’s choke will instantly put your teeth on the brink and crumble due to misalignment. That’s the most humane way to submit, according to Khamzat. Dricus Du Plessis? He is a champ, with just 2 losses. In UFC, no one could strip the Champ’s belt from him. A little bit of that, a little bit of this, and the fighting style no one can read. That’s how Dricus Du Plessis fights. If you really want to delve into sports and MMA prediction, get with us.
In UFC, people argue that the pay for the fighters is too low. And that’s where fans forgot. People like Khamzat aren’t there for money or fame. The one who firmly believes in God and trains. Train and God. And you really think he is there for money? Or someone else can actually fight and win him. Imagine you are fighting someone who only prays, eats, and trains. You are doomed. That’s the reality. The Silva vs Aldrich fight was cancelled for undisclosed reasons. This match was the most expected by the fans. Fans have not seen Khamzat fighting for a long time. Will Dricus Du Plessis secure the championship belt in the long run? Who will be the Champ in this middleweight category? Explore more about betting and sports updates at Betting Premier.
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Background and MMA career
Dricus du Plessis
Dricus du Plessis, or DDP, is a South African professional MMA fighter. Fighting in the middleweight division in the UFC. Holding the championship belt of the middleweight category. Being the first South African to hold the championship belt in the UFC. And also, being in the P2P fighter as #4 says it all. DDP started his martial arts career at the age of 5. Starting with judo, he switched to wrestling at the age of 12. Again, he switched to kickboxing at the age of 14. At just 17 years old, he became the first medallist in the WAKO championship. Through all of this, he made it all the way up towards MMA.
His early fighting career started at EFC, where he won amateur bouts in 2013. Then he jumped to Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW). Again, he returned to EFC and won the first fight with a guillotine choke submission. Here comes the Du Plessis UFC career. He made his debut against Markus Perez on October 11. DDP wins the first fight with a knockout in the first round. Dana got him and found his potential. And the bigger fights came towards him. Started facing Robert Whittaker and still won the fight by Submission. And the game-changer match came. Israel Adesanya, the walking Rock Lee. This particular win got him the middleweight championship.
Khamzat Khizarovich Chimaev
Khamzat Khizarovich Chimaev is a professional Russian mixed martial artist. Do I have to mention that Russians were born by breaking the ice? Where people are afraid of stray dogs. Russians used to wrestle and grapple with the wild bear. People ask if you can stop a bullet if you are training or lifting. With the Russian mindset, I think you can actually stop a bullet. He was born in a village in Russia. He started his wrestling career at the age of 5, too. While he turned 18, he emigrated to Sweden. In his early career, he watched the Aldo vs Conor match, and he spent time. He asked himself why he could not do the same. Then he entered the BCF, and finally, his resume was enough to enter the UFC.
When Dana saw someone, who came from Russia with a strong English accent, He knew he had bagged someone who was going to make a ton of money for the UFC. Just like Shara Bullet and Khabib Nurmagomedov, the list goes on and on. Russian fighters play a huge role in this UFC arena. But after COVID hit, he was really exhausted emotionally and said he was retiring. Surprisingly, Dana White came back and said Khamzat ain’t going nowhere from UFC. Again, he faced Robert Whittaker in this UFC and single-handedly gave him a rear choke. That made Robert gives up instantly.
UFC 319—Event Details
Main Event: Dricus Du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev
Date: August 16, 2025 (Saturday)
Time: 10:00 p.m. ET | 07:00 p.m. PT | 07:30 a.m. IST (next day)
Venue: United Centre, Chicago, United States.
Where can I watch Dricus Du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev?
Watch the Main Card Du Plessis vs. Chimaev at ESPN+ PPV, starting at 10 p.m. ET
You can also watch the UFC319 Preliminary Card at ESPN and ESPN+, starting at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
Don’t miss out; you can also purchase and stream the event using the Hulu app.
Watch the UFC 319 on Sony Liv and Sony Sports Network including the Main card and prelims and Early Prelims.
Keep track with UFC 319 on ESPN+ for the Main card and ESPN, ESPN 2, and ESPN+ for the Prelims.
Dricus Du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev Fight Card
Main card
Dricus du Plessis (C) vs Khamzat Chimaev (Middleweight)
Lerone Murphy vs Aaron Pico (Featherweight)
Geoff Neal vs Carlos Prates (Welterweight)
Jared Cannonier vs Michael Page (Middleweight)
Tim Elliot vs Kai Asakara (Flyweight)
Prelims
King Green vs Carlos Diego Ferreira (Lightweight)
Gerald Meerschaert vs Michał Oleksiejczuk (Middleweight)
Jessica Andrade vs Loopy Godinez (Women’s Strawweight)
Chase Hooper vs Alexander Hernandez (Lightweight)
Early Prelims
Edson Barboza vs Drakkar Klose (Lightweight)
Bryan Battle vs Nursulton Ruziboev (Middleweight)
Dricus Du Plessis Stats and Bio
Nationality: South African
Age: 31
Height: 6′ 0”
Reach: 76”
Total Fights: 25
Record: 23-0-2 (9 Knockouts)
Khamzat Chimaev Stats and Bio
Nationality: Russia
Age: 31
Height: 6’ 2”
Reach: 75”
Total Fights: 14
Record: 14-0-0 (6 Knockouts)
Prediction
Dricus Du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev
If we are talking numbers. We can talk numbers and statistics. If we are talking about reality, then I will clear my throat. Khamzat had 14 fights and was defeated by none. And DDP is a complete champion. Bro owns a belt that is enough to hold the pride. Let’s take DDP first. In UFC, he had 25 fights in total, and knocked out 9 of them. He has some serious chin stability and cardio, too. DDP’s fighting style is completely out of the book. With the fighting style of DDP, even the Diaz brothers will tremble. “Even on the streets”. That’s how powerful DDP is. His drive, his take down, his defence, and the reach advantages. It’s easier for DDP to whoop someone else’s chin. He could casually go 5 rounds and still say “bring Francis”. His cardio is unmatched by others. Which is something we can’t miss out on.
DDP is nearing the status of a perfect fighter. He stands at 6’3″, making him big, strong, and fast, complemented by an incredible war tank. In two of his last three fights, he was involved in five-round battles against Sean Strickland, the little angry boogeymen. His fight IQ is near Jon Jones’ level, and he holds a wide range of skills. The South African fighter holds a second-degree black belt in kickboxing, which explains his impressive numbers of landing 6.12 significant strikes per minute with an accuracy of 48%. His striking is unmatched, and the best proof of that is that he’s got 9 wins by KO/TKO in his portfolio. However, most of his wins happened by submission only. Most recently, he did it against Israel Adesanya in the fight for the title a year ago by putting Israel in a rear choke.
With such statistics, it’s really not a big surprise that he’s still the champion. In our opinion, there’s just one middleweight in the world that may have what it takes to beat him. You know who we are talking about. This shows that DDP is someone who is feared. Khamzat’s first feared opponent will be DDP. Khamzat needs to create a tempo with DDP. If by any chance Khamzat goes for the take down in the initial rounds. DDP has a greater opportunity by a knee to face or double leg Khamzat after the leg drive. If somehow Khamzat solves DDP, he will be the first in history to do so. DDP is not going to let the gap between striking and taking down.
Thus, he knows that it will be Khamzat’s sole strength. As DDPs strike, they do most of the work. Khamzat will still make some gaps himself to take down DDP. Mark the words now. “If Khamzat takes down Du Plessis with one leg or two leg drive, Khamzat’s record turns as 15-0”. And Khamzat will leave the octagon screaming to Dana White, “smesh everybody and kill everybody”. If DDP manages not to give any gap. This match might get into the state of Khamzat getting TKO-ed or KO-ed. Leaving Khamzat losing for the first time in his career. One reason is that Khamzat doesn’t have greater cardio or chin compared to Duplessis.
The final lines are just simple. Khamzat is great, but DDP is just “Greater”. Khamzat is stronger than DDP. He has an insane ground game, and he is also good at takedowns, wrestling, and Grappling. But against DDP is like fighting some guy who trains with Jonathan Jones? UFC is made for people who have mixed arts, not just great wrestlers. We need someone like DC, Jon Jones, or Conor McGregor. We know that UFC rules mostly favour grappling and wrestlers. Yet MMA means something. The pick for this will fall into the hands of the giant DDP. Who will thrive as a champion for the next legacy, too.
The Pick: Dricus Du Plessis via TKO/KO