{"id":43120,"date":"2026-02-13T00:32:03","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T05:32:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/13\/dorikas-du-plessis-reveals-strategy-to-reclaim-title-from-khamzat-chimaev-ready-to-strike-in-april\/"},"modified":"2026-02-13T00:32:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T05:32:03","slug":"dorikas-du-plessis-reveals-strategy-to-reclaim-title-from-khamzat-chimaev-ready-to-strike-in-april","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/13\/dorikas-du-plessis-reveals-strategy-to-reclaim-title-from-khamzat-chimaev-ready-to-strike-in-april\/","title":{"rendered":"Dorikas du Plessis Reveals Strategy to Reclaim Title from Khamzat Chimaev: \u2018Ready to Strike in April\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_74 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/13\/dorikas-du-plessis-reveals-strategy-to-reclaim-title-from-khamzat-chimaev-ready-to-strike-in-april\/#Du_Plessis_plans_to_let_Chimaev_%E2%80%9Cfight_his_own_fight%E2%80%9D_if_they_meet_again\" >Du Plessis plans to let Chimaev &#8220;fight his own fight&#8221; if they meet again<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/2026\/02\/13\/dorikas-du-plessis-reveals-strategy-to-reclaim-title-from-khamzat-chimaev-ready-to-strike-in-april\/#Du_Plessis_understands_the_magnitude_of_his_upcoming_fight\" >Du Plessis understands the magnitude of his upcoming fight<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>Former UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis is eager for a chance to avenge his loss against Khamzat Chimaev in a rematch scheduled for April.<\/p>\n<p>The two middleweights previously met last August for the title, where Chimaev decisively outperformed the South African over five rounds to claim the championship. Since then, both fighters have been inactive, with Chimaev preparing to make his first defense of the middleweight belt.<\/p>\n<p>Du Plessis remains hopeful about reclaiming the 185-pound title but recognizes that he must secure at least one victory before being considered for another championship bout.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Du_Plessis_plans_to_let_Chimaev_%E2%80%9Cfight_his_own_fight%E2%80%9D_if_they_meet_again\"><\/span>Du Plessis plans to let Chimaev &#8220;fight his own fight&#8221; if they meet again<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Currently, Chimaev is expected to defend his title against No. 2 contender Nassourdine Imavov. However, du Plessis is optimistic about disrupting those plans and aims for a title rematch with Chimaev in April. <\/p>\n<p>In their initial fight, Chimaev\u2019s superior wrestling was the key to his victory, and while du Plessis was disappointed with the loss, he acknowledges that this style is part of Chimaev\u2019s strength. \u201cFighting Khamzat again is obviously my goal. Are we expecting any surprises? No,&#8221; du Plessis told Fight Forecast. &#8220;That\u2019s just how he fights. If he tries anything different, it\u2019ll be a bad night for him. He did what he needed to do to win the belt\u2014we can\u2019t fault him for that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite concerns over his wrestling and grappling defense during their first encounter, du Plessis is committed to confronting Chimaev head-on in any potential rematch. &#8220;Now it\u2019s my responsibility to fix those weaknesses, make sure it doesn\u2019t happen again, and let him face me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><br \/>\n<em>Photo by Ed Mulholland\/Zuffa LLC<\/em><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Du_Plessis_understands_the_magnitude_of_his_upcoming_fight\"><\/span>Du Plessis understands the magnitude of his upcoming fight<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The defeat by Chimaev marked du Plessis\u2019 first loss in the UFC, and the 32-year-old is fully aware that his next fight might be the most crucial of his career. Targeting a return in April, he knows that even a loss at that stage would make climbing back into title contention a monumental challenge.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I obviously need to address some aspects of my game, and I\u2019m taking time to do that now. But like I said, I\u2019m ready for the April card in Miami. I don\u2019t have an opponent yet, but I\u2019m prepared to get back in there and go after the belt,&#8221; du Plessis explained.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Of course, I want to beat Khamzat and avenge that loss, but right now the next fight is the most important fight of my life.&#8221;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Fan Take:<\/strong> This upcoming rematch holds huge significance for fight fans as it pits two elite middleweights with contrasting styles against each other once again. If du Plessis can overcome Chimaev\u2019s wrestling dominance, it could reshape the middleweight landscape and set a thrilling precedent for future title rivalries in the UFC.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis is eager for a chance to avenge his loss against Khamzat Chimaev in a rematch scheduled for April. The two middleweights previously met last August for the title, where Chimaev decisively outperformed the South African over five rounds to claim the championship. Since then, both fighters have been [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2443],"tags":[2444],"class_list":{"0":"post-43120","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fighting","8":"tag-fighting"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43120"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43120\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportsdaily.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}