Reinier de Ridder further underlined his status as a rising force in the UFC’s middleweight division when he defeated former champion Robert Whittaker via split decision in the main event of a Fight Night held at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night.
‘RDR’ has now won all four of his UFC matches since joining the organisation last year and can be considered a possible contender for the championship in the months and years to come.
First UFC main event win ✅
— UFC (@ufc) July 26, 2025
Reinier de Ridder leaves #UFCAbuDhabi with his biggest win yet!
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The first two rounds were incredibly close, while the third saw Whittaker land a massive overhand right to knock ‘RDR’ down, and follow-up with a flurry of strikes to nearly force a stoppage, but the Dutchman was able to recover and secure a takedown, from which he was able to control the remainder of the round.
DROPPED HIM 🤯@RobWhittakerMMA connected flush!
— UFC (@ufc) July 26, 2025
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Four and five saw little to separate the fighters, though De Ridder was able to have one more takedown, while also doing some significant damage to ‘The Reaper’ with a couple of nasty knees to the head.
Ultimately, De Ridder took the fight on a split decision of 47-48 48-47 48-47 on the judges’ scorecards after 25 gruelling minutes.
RdR keeps climbing 😤
— UFC (@ufc) July 26, 2025
Reinier de Ridder takes the Split Decision in the #UFCAbuDhabi main event!
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“Very close,” admitted De Ridder after the match. “This guy was too tough... Maybe Dricus next, give me a chance to fight for the strap.”
“I thought I ticked all the boxes, but the pressure was a lot,” said Whittaker, who was gracious but disappointed in defeat.
The rest of the main card saw Bogdan Guskov stop Nikita Krylov in the first round of their light heavyweight match; Asu Almabayev outpointed Jose Ochoa across three rounds in the flyweight division; Shara Magomedov got the better of fellow middleweight Marc-Andre Barriault via unanimous decision; and former bantamweight champion Petr Yan outclassed Marcus McGhee in the co-main event, claiming a unanimous decision triumph.
The UFC continues next weekend with another Fight Night, held at the Apex Facility in Las Vegas on 3 August and headlined by a flyweight clash between Amir Albazi and Tatsuro Taira.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT: RESULTS
- Main event: Middleweight: Reinier de Ridder def. Robert Whittaker via split decision (47-48 48-47 48-47), R5, 5:00
- Bantamweight: Petr Yan def. Marcus McGhee via unanimous decision (29-28 29-28 29-28), R3, 5:00
- Middleweight: Shara Magomedov def. Marc-Andre Barriault via unanimous decision (30-27 30-27 30-27), R3, 5:00
- Flyweight: Asu Almabayev def. Jose Ochoa via unanimous decision (30-27 30-27 29-28), R3, 5:00
- Light heavyweight: Bogdan Guskov def. Nikita Krylov via TKO (punches), R1, 4:18