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Reinier de Ridder and Roman Dolidze are moving up a weight class.
American media outlet mmafighting.com reports that De Ridder and Dolidze are set to face off in a light heavyweight bout. The fight will take place at the UFC event in Sacramento on August 22nd at the Golden 1 Center. News of the matchup was initially broken by Leo Guimaraes.
De Ridder (21-4), a former two-division ONE Championship titleholder, joined the UFC in 2024 and immediately made an impact with four consecutive middleweight victories. His successes included handing Bo Nickal his first career loss and securing a split decision win over former champion Robert Whittaker. These results put "The Dutch Knight" on the cusp of a title shot. However, De Ridder subsequently suffered two consecutive losses – a technical knockout to Brendan Allen and a decision loss to Caio Borralho. Following the defeat to Borralho, De Ridder announced his decision to return to the light heavyweight division.
Dolidze (15-5) has been a consistent presence in the UFC middleweight rankings since joining the organization in 2020. However, after losing his last two fights, Dolidze found himself in a tough spot in the 185-pound division. Consequently, he is moving up to the 205-pound category to try and make a breakthrough in a division where he already boasts three wins and no losses in the octagon. In his last light heavyweight appearance in 2024, Dolidze earned a decision victory against former title challenger Anthony Smith.
The main event in Sacramento will feature a middleweight clash between top-15 ranked fighters Anthony "Fluffy" Hernandez and Gregory "Robocop" Rodrigues.
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