A potential middleweight title fight between defending champion, Dricus du Plessis and the unbeaten, Khamzat Chimaev may not take place as planned for UFC 317 during International Fight Week, with the titleholder reportedly dealing with an undisclosed injury.
As per an initial report from reporter, Kevin Iole, South African star, du Plessis is dealing with an unspecified injury ahead of a planned return at the end of June, which may postpone a middleweight title fight against the undefeated Chechen finisher, Chimaev.
Dricus du Plessis potentially out of planned UFC 317 return
I’m hearing Dricus du Plessis is injured, and though there has been no confirmation, if that’s accurate, a bout between Du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev couldn’t headline IFW,” Iole wrote. “So (Islam) Makhachev will be needed for Las Vegas in June.”
Sidelined since retaining his divsional crown at UFC 312 in February, Pretoria native, du Plessis would land a second career win over former champion, Sean Strickland, turning in a dominant unanimous decision win in Australia.
As for Chimaev, the 13-0 finisher co-headlined UFC 308 back in October of last year. And turning in the most high-profile win of his impressive Octagon tenure to date, the unbeaten star landed a one-sided opening round neck crank submission win over former undisputed champion, Robert Whittaker.
As pointed out by Iole, a title defense for current lightweight kingpin, Makhachev has also been indentified as a potential option for the event in June.
Namely, a showdown with former featherweight kingpin, Ilia Topuria has long been mooted, as well as a title showcase against former interim gold holder, Justin Gaethje.
At the time of publication, a headliner for the UFC 317 card this summer has yet to be determined, however, rumors suggest the promotion had been planning a title fight between Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev to feature in some capacity.
