Reinier De Ridder | Straight To The Point

“It’s been good,” began de Ridder, who faces Caio Borralho in the co-main event of UFC 326 on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena. “I’ve done a lot of work figuring out where my body is at, what went wrong with my body, and I think I’ve found that out. I got back to hard training. I feel basically five years younger. I feel ready to go.

“I just did a full analysis of everything that went wrong and figured out that fighting five times in 11 months is a bit too much maybe,” he added with a smile when further asked what contributed to under-performing against Allen last fall. “I really put a lot of effort into recovery this time — oxygen stuff that’s maybe a bit too boring for this, but I feel good again. I feel like I can run through a wall every once in a while.”

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But the best example of his directness came in his assessment of the contest, which ended between the fourth and fifth rounds when de Ridder and his corner acknowledged that he was unable to continue, giving Allen the stoppage win and a place in the Top 5.

When asked if he learned anything else from the bout that led to adjustments in this camp or altered how he viewed his place in the division, de Ridder simply said, “Mostly just the physical thing, mostly just recovery.

“I know I can beat anybody on the planet, and I think I kinda showed it in the fight as well,” he continued, speaking plainly, frankly, rather than sounding like someone trying to convince themselves of their own abilities. “The first round I fully dominated him, got close to finishing him. I had a full metabolic dump basically — no energy left — and I still got him in the reverse triangle in the third round.

“I know my skills are there. I know mentally I’m always strong, but now hopefully I can show my body is there as well.”

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While the close of his first 12 months on the roster didn’t go as hoped, the Top 10 standout still clearly made an impression on the UFC brass during that time. Despite he and Borralho coming off setbacks, their matchup was repositioned as the co-main event this weekend.

Those things don’t always happen, even in times of necessity, and de Ridder is appreciative of the opportunity to get himself moving in the right direction on this weekend’s action-packed main card.

“I’m very honored that even after that last performance, I’m still here, still at the top of the card, still part of a card like this; I’m very thankful for that,” he said. “It feels like I have another opportunity to prove myself again.”

Though there shouldn’t be any doubt about his bona fides given all he achieved in his initial year on the roster, the old adage that “you’re only as good as your last fight” hangs over everyone coming off a disappointing effort, which extends to his opponent in this matchup as well.

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Like de Ridder, Borralho entered the fall on a hot streak but went into winter with the sore taste of defeat lingering in his mouth after falling to Nassourdine Imavov in Paris. It was The Fighting Nerds representative’s first UFC setback and the first time he’d lost since his second professional fight a decade earlier.

“I think he’s very measured, very balanced, and I think I’ve got to bring the fight to him,” de Ridder said of his Brazilian opponent, offering a brief, but clear assessment of how he sees Borralho and the direction he foresees their matchup this weekend taking.

His previous wins over Gerald Meerschaert, Kevin Holland, Bo Nickal and Robert Whittaker carried de Ridder to the brink of title contention in the middleweight division. While things are still a little crowded ahead of him in the rankings, he believes a win this weekend puts him right back in the thick of the chase, where an abundance of exciting matchups await.

“Top 5 basically, getting close to a title shot once more,” he said when asked where a win over Borralho puts him this weekend before shifting his attention to the competitive and thriving middleweight ranks.

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“It’s interesting that Khamzat-Imavov has not been announced, so I feel like it might not happen,” he said of the much pondered championship pairing between champion Khamzat Chimaev and the streaking Imavov, starting his review of the weight class at the top and working his way down from there. “[Sean] Strickland had an amazing performance against “Fluffy” [Hernandez] — I was very, very impressed with what he did there. Dricus [Du Plessis] is around. [Israel] Adesanya is still a great fight. The only thing I have to do to set me up for those great fights is beat Caio and beat him decisively and then I’m right there again.

“It’s still a dream fight! C’mon — it has to happen one day!” he said of a pairing with the former champion Adesanya, who headlines later this month in Seattle opposite Joe Pyfer. “But also Dricus, also Strickland, Khamzat; there are so many fun fights.”

And as he said, all that de Ridder needs to set himself up for one of those matchups is get through Borralho with style points this weekend, which is precisely what he is aiming to do.

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“That I am back — that’s the statement I want to make,” de Ridder said “[I want it to look like] full dominance — me pressing the action, getting close, being in control. Might be nice if it goes a little longer to prove there is some cardio now, but I don’t really need that to be honest.

“If I could finish him early, that would be the dream scenario.”