De Ridder admits Whittaker split decision drained him ahead of light heavyweight debut

Reinier de Ridder has admitted that his split decision victory over Robert Whittaker left him more shaken than the scorecards suggested, and says he is in no hurry to face the former UFC middleweight champion again as both men settle into the light heavyweight division.

The Dutchman makes his UFC 205-pound debut against Roman Dolidze at UFC Sacramento on 22 August, having moved up from middleweight following back-to-back losses to Brendan Allen and Caio Borralho. Whittaker has made the same journey, arriving at light heavyweight after defeats to Khamzat Chimaev and de Ridder, and has already marked his arrival with a stoppage win over Nikita Krylov.

De Ridder, a former One Championship two-weight titleholder, edged Whittaker via split decision at middleweight last year, but speaking at UFC Sacramento media day, he was candid about how difficult that night was.

“I hope that they don’t propose that [rematch] for now,” de Ridder said. “[Whittaker] is still so f*cking quick. In the fight we had the thing that really amazed me was how quick he was with the 1-2 every time. That fight really took a lot out of me. I had to dig deep to win that fight. So, if I can avoid that for a while, I’ll be really happy.”

De Ridder said Whittaker’s hand speed, particularly the jab-cross combination, caught him off guard and forced him to work harder than anticipated to secure the win. The admission underlines just how competitive that bout was despite the Dutchman coming away with the victory.

With both fighters now operating at 205 pounds, the prospect of a rematch at light heavyweight is a realistic one further down the line. For now, though, de Ridder is focused on establishing himself in a new division, starting with Dolidze in Sacramento.