Reinier de Ridder Calls Out Sean Strickland After UFC Des Moines Win

For Reinier de Ridder, it is top five or bust in his next matchup.

Dutch grappler De Ridder (20-2) co-headlined UFC on ESPN 67 opposite Nickal (7-1) at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa on Saturday. While de Ridder closed in as a hefty betting underdog ahead of the pairing, he surprised everyone by choosing to wrestle the former three-time NCAA Division I champ right from the start. De Ridder spoiled Nickal’s unbeaten record by folding him with knees to the body in the second round.

“The Dutch Knight” then called out Sean Strickland, a decision he admitted he might already regret due to the former champ’s well-known trash talk. But De Ridder believes Strickland is an interesting matchup for him stylistically, and can’t want to get the bout booked. De Ridder said at the UFC Des Moines post-fight presser:

“I think I might be regretting it a little bit,” De Ridder remarked later that night after calling out Strickland in the Octagon. “But as I said in the cage, [Bo] is the best American wrestler, let’s do the best American striker. I like Sean, he’s a funny dude, he’s a real character… And I think it’s an interesting matchup style wise. He’s got a very good jab, I don’t think my jab is too bad. I would like that fight… next week, Montreal baby, let’s go.”

A former two-division ONE Championship title holder, de Ridder has finished all three of his UFC opponents since joining the promotion last November. Meanwhile, Strickland is coming off a failed middleweight bid to regain his title in a rematch against Dricus Du Plessis.