Dricus Du Plessis would gladly take out ‘boogeyman’ Khamzat Chimaev if he beats Sean Strickland

Dricus Du Plessis expresses his eagerness to go up against Khamzat Chimaev if he becomes the champion.

Du Plessis (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) is set to challenge middleweight titleholder Sean Strickland (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) in the UFC 297 main event on Jan. 20 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

Chimaev’s (13-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) win over Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 in October solidified him as a No. 1 contender. Therefore, Du Plessis anticipates facing the unbeaten Chimaev next if he defeats Strickland, and he embraces that challenge.

“I think the UFC is probably going to want to do Khamzat,” Du Plessis stated in an interview with My MMA News. “He’s a big draw and they said if he wins this fight against Usman that he will get a title shot. If that’s the fight, I would gladly, as champion, take out the boogeyman; it would be a massive pleasure. I think that’s probably what they want to be doing and we’ll will see if it plays out that way. For now, I have one target and that target is Sean Strickland.”

Du Plessis warns Chimaev that he won’t be able to dominate his opponents at 185 pounds as he did in the welterweight division. He is determined to make the undefeated rising star feel the difference in their fight.

“He’s going to try and take me down, and he should. I don’t think he realizes the power difference between 170 and 185,” Du Plessis expressed. “In terms of style, he tries to overpower everybody he fights because he wants to show how strong he is. If he fights me and adopts the same strategy, he’s going to realize what real strength feels like.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie