Reinier de Ridder on Caio Borralho: ‘He’s not the Greatest Grappler or Striker.’
Reinier de Ridder faces Caio Borralho in the co-main, a middleweight bout where both look to rebound from recent losses. De Ridder, the Dutch fighter with a grappling background from ONE Championship, calls out Borralho’s balanced style in a recent interview. UFC 326 heats up with Max Holloway defending the BMF title against Charles Oliveira in the main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 7.
Reinier de Ridder Breaks Down Caio Borralho
De Ridder broke down his opponent with Emiel Sardarean ahead of the fight. He respects Borralho’s risk management but plans to disrupt it.
“Yeah. I think what makes him special is that he is very well balanced and he manages risk very well. That’s what makes him special. He’s not the greatest grappler, he’s not the greatest striker, but he knows when to press and when to step back, and he knows when to explode. He does that very well.”
“I think that’s the most important thing in my mind going into this fight. He’s going to want to make it pretty. He likes to bounce in and out, throw a couple of shots, take a step back, look, see. He’s going to try to steal the rounds, control the fight, slow it down. That’s the way he wins. He’s very balanced, very well measured. I do my best work when I put pressure on, get in your face, hit you with good stuff, take you down, and choke you out. I want to impose my will, push him back, get him against the cage. That’s what I do best.”
De Ridder enters off a tough loss to Brendan Allen last October at UFC Fight Night 262, where his corner stopped the fight after round four due to exhaustion. Before that setback, he won four straight UFC fights in nine months, beating Robert Whittaker, Bo Nickal, Kevin Holland, and Gerald Meerschaert. The 35-year-old former two-division ONE champ moved to middleweight after success there and eyes a return to title contention.
Borralho, 33 from Brazil, also seeks a reset after a decision loss to Nassourdine Imavov in September, his first UFC defeat following an 8-0 run that included wins over Jared Cannonier and Paul Craig. He expects de Ridder at his peak, calling it a chance to beat top competition. Betting odds favor Borralho at 2-to-1, given his striking edge, but de Ridder’s pressure could flip the script.
This co-main carries weight in the middleweight division, with new champ Khamzat Chimaev ahead. Michael Bisping highlighted the stakes, noting a win positions either for top-10 status. De Ridder’s forward style clashes perfectly with Borralho’s measured approach, setting up fireworks under the Holloway-Oliveira spotlight. Holloway won the BMF belt with a last-second KO of Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 and defended it against Dustin Poirier; Oliveira brings 21 UFC finishes. Expect de Ridder to test his gas tank early by pinning Borralho to the fence.
