UFC middleweight contender Reinier de Ridder firmly believes that he will be able to defeat Khamzat Chimaev if the two do fight each other.

Reinier de Ridder recently called for a middleweight title shot against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 321. de Ridder has been on an impressive run

Reinier de Ridder recently reacted to Khamzat Chimaev vowing to make him look like a "white belt" in a potential fight.

Reinier de Ridder had designs on some time off after his win over Robert Whittaker at UFC Abu Dhabi but now he’s actually targeting a much quicker turnaround with hopes that he could face new middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev sooner than later.

UFC CEO Dana White expressed a willingness to grant Chimaev his wish if he's serious about it. If it comes to fruition, de Ridder thinks he is the correct contender to be standing on the other side of the cage.

At 4-0 in the UFC, de Ridder has quickly become a top contender in the 185-pound division. And he now owns a spot in the ESPN middleweight rankings, bumping Whittaker down a couple of spots in the top 10. That is the only change in these latest rankings.

Reinier de Ridder wasn't impressed with Dricus du Plessis' performance against Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319. The No.5-ranked middleweight contender watched the action from cageside in Chicago.

Whittaker, who was quickly submitted by Chimaev at UFC 308, went on to lose his second-straight fight to Reinier de Ridder (21-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) last month in the UFC on ABC 9 headliner. De Ridder was able to survive a Round 3 knockdown to outlast Whittaker.