Reinier de Ridder explains decision to leave ONE Championship for the UFC: “We had a plan…”

Former ONE Championship titleholder Reinier De Ridder is opening up on his UFC signing.

‘The Dutch Knight’ has long been viewed as one of the best fighters outside of Dana White’s promotion. From 2019 to 2022, Reinier de Ridder picked up big win, after big win, inside ONE Championship. At one point, the Dutchman held gold at two different weight classes and held wins over the likes of Aung La Nsang and Vitaly Bigdash.

However, after back-to-back losses to Anatoly Malykhin, the two sides grew apart. Earlier this year, Reinier de Ridder announced that he was a free agent. In July, he appeared in a one-off for UAE Warriors, scoring a first-round knockout victory over Magomedmurad Khasaev. Just a few months removed from that win, the former ONE star has signed with the UFC.

Earlier today, the middleweight signed a deal to face Gerald Meerschaert at UFC Vegas 100 in November. In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Reinier de Ridder opened up on that fight, and his decision to sign with Dana White. There, the Dutchman admitted that he’s not getting a big pay bump for his signing.

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Reinier de Ridder opens up on UFC signing, departure from ONE Championship

Instead, Reinier de Ridder was drawn in by the UFC brand as a whole. While ‘The Dutch Knight’ could make more money elsewhere, he wants to be the best. To prove that, de Ridder had to head to the Dana White-led company.

“Yeah, I don’t think I can tell you guys everything right now.” Reiner de Ridder stated to MMA Junkie when asked about his UFC signing. “A lot of stuff happened and thankfully everything fell into place. We had a plan, and it worked out, basically. I’ve had a lot of good things happen to me since I joined with ONE, a lot of good opportunities, it was very good for a long time. It hasn’t been so good for a little while as well. Maybe one day, I’ll talk a little bit more about it.”

He continued, “For now, I’ll keep my cards a little close to my chest… I always take everything one step at a time, but the UFC has always been in the back of my mind. Yeah, I’m like every fighter, I’m not that special in that regard. They can offer you twice the money somewhere else, but everybody wants to go to the UFC. We’re all just dummies to be honest! The plan was to get a fight there at UAE, get it done quick, and get the ball rolling to sign with the UFC.”

What do you make of these comments from the former ONE Championship star? Are you excited for Reinier de Ridder’s UFC debut?