Reinier de Ridder is entering the biggest fight of his career when he meets Robert Whittaker in the main event later today (Sat., July 26, 2025) at UFC Abu Dhabi LIVE on ABC/ESPN+ from inside Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, but when it’s all said and done “The Dutch Knight” is just happy to be an active fighter.
Before his crossover to UFC, de Ridder was one of the biggest stars competing for ONE Championship. At one time, RDR held belts in both the middleweight and light heavyweight
divisions, making him one of the most sought after fighters in mixed martial arts (MMA) not competing under the UFC banner. De Ridder did end his ONE run with back-to-back losses to knockout sensation Anatoly Malykhin, but his overall MMA stock remained high.
Despite de Ridder’s success under the ONE banner he had a tough time dealing with matchmakers towards the end of his tenure. “Dutch Knight” tried to get back in action following his losses to Malykhin, but kept getting dragged along by the promotion. Before he knew it, de Ridder was fighting to part ways with ONE and take his talents somewhere else, even warning other fighters to stay away from the organization.
Earlier this week, de Ridder doubled down on his warning to other athletes looking to join the ONE roster. Due in part to the fact that former ONE standout, Marcus Buchecha, is making his Octagon debut this weekend at UFC Abu Dhabi, de Ridder believes ONE is spiraling out of control.
“It’s looking for good for us but not looking good for ONE at the moment,” de Ridder told MMA Fighting. “Unfortunately you are right but we’ll see how they bounce back hopefully but I’m not sure.
“With Buchecha, [we’ve] been putting in a lot of work together as well here in Florida. It will be cool to share a card with him. So happy for that guy that he’s finally free as well, finally able to get fights, too.”
Fortunately for de Ridder, he has joined a promotion in UFC that rewards fighters who want to stay active. This weekend’s matchup with Whittaker will be de Ridder’s fourth trip to the Octagon since his official debut in Nov. 2024. That’s a lot of action for any fighter, but something that “Dutch Knight” ultimately asked for.
“Be careful what you wish for maybe,” said de Ridder about himself. “Because that’s what I’ve been asking for years is activity and I’m getting activity. This is going to be my fifth fight in a year. When I fight it will be exactly one year since I fought for UAE Warriors here in Abu Dhabi.
“It all came together very quickly but I’ve been settling down in Florida more so I found a house, I found a place to stay full time. My kids are going to go to school there so I’m thinking of doing more activity next year as well.”
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Abu Dhabi fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ preliminary card matchups, which are scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining main card balance on ABC/ESPN+ at 3 p.m. ET.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC Abu Dhabi news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archives here, here, and here. For the updated and finalized “Whittaker vs. De Ridder” fight card and ABC/ESPN+ lineup click here.
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