Reinier de Ridder knew he would win a lot of attention and get lots of callouts from fighters who want to defeat former UFC champions like Robert Whittaker and suddenly challenge him.
Probably the chief among them is Paulo Costa, the one-time title challenger. He decided on Romankopirov at UFC 318 to stop the skid in two games. A few days later, Costa was still going to his tilade on social media, but many of his responses were directed at fake accounts that didn’t actually belong to De Ridder.
That account was eventually suspended, but De Ridder turned his attention to his online matchmaking skills and was forced to laugh at Costa’s antics.
“I think he really, really wants that fight,” De Ridder told MMA Fighting. “He really wants to set up something. Try it. Try it, Paul. You’ll get there.”
Beat Whiterker – Costa’s feat was not achieved when he went on the same fight in 2024 – putting Doidarder near the top of the middleweight division rankings, only one win away from the title shot.
In fact, since joining the UFC roster, he was given the buzz he earned with a perfect 4-0 record. This includes Bo Nickal, which is highly hyped as a victory over Whittaker.
So he’s not sweating from Costa or anyone else because De Ridder has a big goal in his mind.
“He’s going to be a fun build-up,” De Ridar said of his battle with Costa. “It’s going to be a lot of fun with press conferences and Paul because he’s a character. But I don’t think he’s there right now.”
With Costa’s past six fights, it’s difficult to discuss De Ridder’s rating. It’s especially hard to know how close he’s to the title shot.
De Ridder has remained very active since signing with the UFC after a tenuous breakup in one championship, but De Ridder admits he’s ready for a bit of a break and a break. In the meantime, UFC middleweight Doricus du Plessis has defended the title against Kamza Chimaev in the UFC 319 main event.
“Every time I joined the UFC, I fought three days after my final fight,” De Ridder said. “But I don’t think it’s going to be like that this time. It’s going to take a few weeks. At least I want to see the battle of Cam the Dreams first, and then see what happens afterwards.
“It was four fights in eight months. I want to spend time on the beach, have a nice barbecue and have a good time with my kids and wife. That’s what I’m looking for now, but I can’t keep them inert for a long time.
A five-round war that ends with victory in established veterans like Whittaker has De Ridder in a very good position for the future. He also finally gets the recognition he deserves after his victory over Nikkal was largely overshadowed by a former Pennsylvania wrestler who suffered his first defeat.
Now De Ridder is taking a dramatic step in the rankings and he knows that the champion walking from UFC 319 must now pay attention to him.
“As far as I know, I’m in the top five right now,” De Ridar said. “I’m coming there. Let’s give you a few weeks to recover and see if we can climb higher.”