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Dricus du Plessis has made a career of proving people wrong — and he says he intends to do it all over again against Khamzat Chimaev.

Chimaev underscored his title credentials at 185-pounds at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night, forcing a tap from Robert Whittaker and apparently causing a not-insignificant mouth injury to the former champion in the process. The win — and particularly the manner of it — renewed calls for Chimaev to be inserted in a middleweight title bout against Du Plessis, but the reigning champion is more than confident that he will orchestrate a victory against the unbeaten Chechen.

“Feel really sorry for Rob,” Du Plessis wrote on social media soon after the fight. “He looked super ready but this is the fight game. Well done on a good performance Khamzat.

“That being said I can’t wait to take your 0.”

For his part, Chimaev appeared to dismiss Du Plessis’s credentials when speaking to the media, including The Mac Life, post fight.

“How I did with this guy, Rob, and how he done?” Chimaev said of Du Plessis, who scored a second-round TKO win over Whittaker earlier this year. “Rob took him down, so if Rob took him down, there is salam alaikum [when I fight him].”