Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev's former opponent shares insightful preview of UFC 319 title clash: "Million dollar question"

Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev's upcoming middleweight title clash is arguably the most anticipated fight in the UFC. While the MMA fandom and the pundits have their opinions and predictions for the fight, perhaps none is more qualified to weigh in than the former champion who has faced them both.

Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has shared the octagon with both fighters. 'The Repear' suffered a second-round TKO against 'Stillknocks' at UFC 290 and fell prey to a terrifying first-round submission loss to Chimaev at UFC 308, which left him with a broken jaw.

Talking to FOX Sports' Niko Pajarillo about the upcoming UFC 319 title clash, Whittaker repeated what he's been saying since the fight was first announced. As he sees it, 'Borz' will win if he can overwhelm Du Plessis with wrestling and finish him on the ground; otherwise, it's the South African's fight to lose.

Whittaker shared his prediction, saying:

"Honestly, I'd have to say Dricus would be a favorite. He probably is the favorite. I think I'm leaning towards Dricus. The whole thing can be summed up [as] Chimaev will take him down, will he finish him before he gets back up? That's the million-dollar question, because if he doesn't, if he doesn't finish him on the ground, I think he loses."

Check out Robert Whittaker's comments on Dricus du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev below:

Chimaev is undefeated in his MMA career. However, the Chechen-born UAE national seems to struggle when he is unable to continue dominating his opponents on the ground, as evidenced by his fights against Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns.

On the other hand, Du Plessis has mostly been on a dominant run in his UFC career, outclassing the likes of Israel Adesanya and Sean Strickland in his most recent fights.

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When Joe Rogan explained why Dricus du Plessis could struggle against Khamzat Chimaev

Khamzat Chimaev's jaw-breaking submission over Robert Whittaker has Joe Rogan convinced that the 31-year-old wrestler is as dominant or even better than the legendary Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Previewing a potential clash between Dricus du Plessis and 'Borz' during episode #2220 of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, the UFC commentator noted that while 'Stillknocks' is a well-rounded fighter, he was unsure whether Du Plessis could outlast 'Borz's' grappling onslaught:

"[Du Plessis] can wrestle, he's got very good jiu-jitsu. He hits f***king hard, and he is a big, durable dude, but I don't know if he's going to be able to wrestle with that guy... Khamzat's skill is so high-level that it makes me wonder. Like, you see it in jiu-jitsu, there's some guys that look really good until they fight somebody who is really, really good, and they get manhandled."

Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (2:01):