Dricus Du Plessis dismissed the suggestion that Khamzat Chimaev’s weight cut played a significant role in his split decision loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 328, calling it a rookie-level cut that does not justify being used as an excuse.
Chimaev’s teammate Arman Tsarukyan revealed after the fight that Chimaev had to cut 12 to 13 pounds in the final 24 hours before weigh-ins, with some attributing his early slowdown to the drastic cut. Du Plessis, who lost his middleweight title to Chimaev before Chimaev dropped it to Strickland, had no sympathy speaking on Fight Forecast.
“I think this whole weight cut excuse is ridiculous. I mean, they said he cut 12 pounds in the 24 hours. Those are rookie numbers. 12 pounds in 24 hours, that’s not that bad. What matters is that last 24 hours and 12 pounds is not that much. I definitely done more than that. Sometimes I’ve had bad weight cuts, too. Everybody that cuts weight has had that experience where the next day you feel, ‘Ugh,’ and you have a bad cut. One kilogram can make the world of difference in a weight cut. I just think using a weight cut as an excuse when it comes to the fight, even if you did have a bad weight cut, it’s fine.”
Du Plessis delivered a broader message about accountability in the sport.
“It’s happened to all of us, but you don’t go out and say, ‘Oh, I lost the fight because of that.’ No. If you want to change weight divisions, change weight divisions. But blaming a bad weight cut is like saying, ‘I lost the fight because I wasn’t fit.’ It’s on you. Be more disciplined. Be more disciplined and the weight cut would be easier. When you get to octagon, there is no excuse. Be a man and take your loss like a man. Don’t make any excuses. There are no excuses.”
Chimaev initially told Dana White he wanted to move to light heavyweight after the loss, but later reversed course and expressed a desire to rematch Strickland.