Photos: Reinier de Ridder's 5 best victories in ONE Championship

Reinier de Ridder has been on a path of absolute destruction in ONE Championship and he’s only getting started.

Hailing from the once fortified medieval city of Breda in the Netherlands, de Ridder is pretty much the picture of his unique moniker as he tore through the competition in both the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions.

‘The Dutch Knight’ holds a perfect professional record of 15-0, including six wins in ONE Championship, and has looked nothing short of invincible inside the circle.

He even went to the world of submission grappling and challenged Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Andre Galvao. While that fight ended in a draw, there’s no doubt that de Ridder could be a force in whatever combat discipline he chooses to compete in.

Yes, he’s remained perfect in ONE Championship, but not all wins are created equal. That said, here are the visual representations of ‘The Dutch Knight’s greatest wins yet.

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#5. Reinier de Ridder vs. Gilberto Galvao (ONE: Legendary Quest, June 2019)

Reinier de Ridder vs. Gilberto Galvao. [Photo ONE Championship]

Reinier de Ridder was only in his second fight with ONE Championship when he showed just how dangerous he can be.

Taking on the hulking Gilberto Galvao, de Ridder showed glimpses of his grappling and striking ability to knock out the Brazilian in the second round of their middleweight bout at ONE: Legendary Quest in June 2019.

'The Dutch Knight' had no problems controlling the match with his wrestling and he utilized that superior grappling skill well into the second round where he eventually stopped Galvao.

Scoring a takedown early in the second, de Ridder secured Galvao’s neck and that was when the Dutch star rained heavy punishment.

Holding on to his opponent’s neck as if attempting a D’Arce choke, de Ridder landed a couple of damaging knees that slept Galvao.

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#4. Reinier de Ridder vs. Leandro Ataides (ONE: Warrior’s Code, February 2020)

Reinier de Ridder vs. Leandro Ataides. [Photo ONE Championship]

It was a matchup between two high-level grapplers, but what transpired was an all-out brawl between Leandro Ataides and Reinier de Ridder.

The match was a world title eliminator for Aung La N Sang’s ONE middleweight world championship and de Ridder made sure that it was going to be him who would square up against the Burmese legend.

'The Dutch Knight' was in the biggest fight of his career at that point and he delivered an inspiring performance in front of a raucous Indonesian crowd.

Foregoing his grappling for much of the match, de Ridder threw bombs that battered and rocked Ataides. The Dutch star did sustain damage during the fight, but it was his tenacity that pulled him through and pushed him to take the first step toward double-belt status.

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#3. Reinier de Ridder vs. Aung La N Sang (ONE: Inside the Matrix, October 2020)

Reinier de Ridder vs. Aung La N Sang I. [Photo ONE Championship]

'The Dutch Knight' did what the world thought, at that time, was impossible.

Aung La N Sang was a rampaging behemoth during his reign as both the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight world champion. ‘The Burmese Python’ appeared unbeatable during his championship run, but de Ridder proved that even titans could fall.

Like a jousting knight barreling down the lists, de Ridder took down Aung La and immediately secured dominant position.

The Dutchman coiled around Aung La’s back for much of the fight and, in a flash, managed to position himself for a rear-naked choke.

After a few seconds of hellacious grappling, de Ridder finally slipped his forearm under Aung La’s chin, forcing the once-dominant world champion to submit 3:26 into the bout.

The Dutch star captured the ONE middleweight world title in less than a round, but he was only halfway through his golden run.

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#2. Reinier de Ridder vs. Aung La N Sang II (ONE on TNT IV, April 2021)

Reinier de Ridder vs. Aung La N Sang II. [Photo ONE Championship]

Mere months later, and de Ridder was back in the circle once more to challenge Aung La N Sang, this time it was as a late-notice replacement to challenge for the ONE light heavyweight world title.

Already holding the middleweight crown, de Ridder was on the hunt for double-champ status and he would achieve the rare feat against a man he had already beaten.

Unlike their previous matchup, the battle for the light heavyweight gold took up the entire five rounds. What was similar, though, was how de Ridder used his grappling to control the match throughout.

'The Dutch Knight' nearly scored an early submission when he appeared to have an arm triangle locked in in the first round, but Aung La managed to wriggle his way out of trouble.

Nevertheless, it was a match de Ridder was destined to win and it was the fight that ultimately made him the ONE middleweight and light heavyweight world champion.

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#1. Reinier de Ridder vs. Kiamrian Abbasov (ONE: Full Circle, February 2022)

Reinier de Ridder vs. Kiamrian Abbasov. [Photo ONE Championship]

With now two belts slung above his shoulders, de Ridder set out to begin his reign as champ-champ. His first task was to defend the ONE middleweight world title against the reigning ONE welterweight world champion Kiamrian Abbasov.

Abbasov was on a four-fight winning streak and launched his own bid for double-champ status when he challenged de Ridder at ONE: Full Circle in February this year.

Reinier de Ridder, however, was an all-too-different beast.

In typical de Ridder fashion, ‘The Dutch Knight’ shot for the takedown immediately as the bell rang. Staying in dominant position for much of the fight, de Ridder ground out Abbasov with his wrestling and ground striking.

The Dutchman rained down hellacious elbows from the top position and, with Abbasov’s tank draining by the second, decided to end the match with a vice-like head and arm choke just 56 seconds into the third round.