The headline event at UFC Fight Night in Abu Dhabi lived up to its hype as Reinier de Ridder secured a split-decision victory over Robert Whittaker at the Etihad Arena on Saturday night.
De Ridder secured a 48-47 decision from two judges, Ben Cartlidge and David Lethaby, while Mike Bell gave the contest to Whittaker 48-47.
Whittaker put up a markedly improved performance since his last fight in the promotion, where the Australian suffered a first-round defeat in just three minutes and 34 seconds; forced to tap out by Khamzat Chimaev in October last year.
On Saturday, Whittaker landed a big knockdown with a strike in the third round of the middleweight match. However, de Ridder - who has a 20-2 record and has been on a roll since moving out of One Championship - recovered and dominated the stat sheet.
De Ridder landed 192 total strikes, while Whittaker connected on only 70. Additionally, de Ridder recorded two takedowns.
"I expected to take him down and choke him out," de Ridder said. "He was amazing. So tough, so durable, heavy hands."
"I don't want to fight anyone like this man again," de Ridder added.
"He was too tough. I want to finish a guy in the first round, so maybe it would be better if I fought Khamzat (Chimaev) or Dricus (Du Plessis)."
The 34-year-old thus continued his rise up the ranks in the middleweight division, picking up his fourth straight UFC win and fifth MMA victory in a row.
It also marked a significant milestone in De Ridder's MMA career. The Dutchman had been handed a contract in the promotion last July shortly after appearing at UAE Warriors. It followed a falling out with One Championship, an organisation where he was a double world champion, leading to a period of inactivity.
It was De Ridder's fourth straight victory in UFC after recording wins over Gerald Meerschaert, Kevin Holland and Bo Nickal, all without going the distance.
Elsewhere on the main card, Bogdan Guskov knocked out Nikita Krylov 4:18 into the first round of their light heavyweight clash. It is the fourth consecutive win by either knockout or submission for the Uzbekistani.
Petr Yan defeated Marcus McGhee by unanimous decision in a bantamweight clash. Yan outpaced his opponent in total strikes, significant strikes, control and takedowns.
In the middleweight division, Shara Magomedov bounced back from his first professional loss against Michael Page in February to win over Marc-Andre Barriault by unanimous decision. Magomedov earned a 30-27 score from all three judges.
Flyweight fighter Asu Almabayev also won by unanimous decision, defeating 24-year-old Peruvian Jose Ochoa. Ochoa battled hard and landed 118 total strikes, but Almabayev controlled the fight with seven takedowns.
