Reinier de Ridder will look to continue his winning streak when he faces Robert Whittaker in the middleweight main event of a UFC Fight Night, set for the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on the evening of Saturday 26 July 2025.
De Ridder (20-2) has won all three of his UFC fights since joining the promotion last year (submitting Gerald Meerschaert and Kevin Holland, and stopping Bo Nickal) and is on a four-match winning streak overall.
However, Whittaker (26-8) represents a step up for the 34-year-old ‘Dutch Knight’. ‘The Reaper’ may have lost his last fight to Khamzat Chimaev, but is a former champion in the division and should be a major obstacle for De Ridder.
Whittaker has expressed his belief that a win in this clash puts him back on track to challenge for the title at 185 lbs.
“Victory over RDR [Reinier de Ridder] pushes me in the path towards gold [the championship],” said the 34-year-old Antipodean. “That’s what I’m trying to head for, that’s the direction I want to head to. It makes me a better fighter.”
Whittaker added, “I want to get that title. That’s what I’m fighting for. I’m doing everything in my power to beat RDR, and that will push me in the direction I need to go to get rematches or fights with people that are holding the strap.
“He’s [De Ridder] well put together, he’s got a really good skill set, he’s high calibre, so I look forward to putting on a show.”
The rest of the main card features a featherweight fight pitting Movsar Evloev against Aaron Pico; high-class bantamweight bouts will see Petr Yan take on Marcus McGhee, and Bryce Mitchell faces Said Nurmagomedov; Shara Magomedov will battle Marc-Andre Barriault in the middleweight division; and a flyweight opener sees Asu Almabayev take on Ramazan Temirov.
UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. De Ridder – Main card
- Main event: Middleweight: Robert Whittaker v Reinier de Ridder
- Featherweight: Movsar Evloev v Aaron Pico
- Bantamweight: Petr Yan v Marcus McGhee
- Bantamweight: Bryce Mitchell v Said Nurmagomedov
- Middleweight: Shara Magomedov v Marc-Andre Barriault
- Flyweight: Asu Almabayev v Ramazan Temirov