What’s next for Reinier de Ridder and Robert Whittaker after UFC Abu Dhabi?

The UFC was in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, on Saturday, July 26, for a solid UFC Abu Dhabi card. The main event saw former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker taking on Reinier de Ridder.

Entering the fight, Whittaker was coming off a submission loss to Khamzat Chimaev, which snapped his two-fight winning streak. de Ridder, meanwhile, had an upset knockout win over Bo Nickal last time out.

Ultimately, it was de Ridder who edged out a split decision in a very entertaining and back-and-forth fight. Both men were hurt at times, but de Ridder got the victory. Following UFC Abu Dhabi, here is what I think should be next for the stars of the main event.

Reinier de Ridder

Reinier de Ridder picked up an upset win over Robert Whittaker at UFC Abu Dhabi to make him a legit title contender at middleweight. The Dutch fighter was able to use his knees to hurt Whittaker and his grappling to control Whittaker enough to edge out the decision.

With the win, de Ridder is in the title picture, but the winner of Nassourdine Imavov vs Caio Borralho should face the winner of Dricus Du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev. With that, de Ridder should fight the loser of the title fight as if de Ridder wins, he would be the next title contender.

Robert Whittaker

Robert Whittaker is now on a two-fight losing streak for just the second time in his career, as he lost a close decision to de Ridder. Whittaker had his moments as he dropped de Ridder and nearly knocked him out in the third round.

With the loss, Whittaker will now be outside of the top five at middleweight and is in a weird spot in the division. He should take some time off and may not return until next year. But, a logical next fight is to headline a Fight Night card against the winner of Anthony Hernandez vs Roman Dolidze, which takes place on August 9.