Caio Borralho traveled to South Africa to challenge Dricus Du Plessis to a fight, prompting a heated social media exchange between the two middleweights. Du Plessis invited Borralho to come spar at his gym and offered to post the footage, while Borralho responded by telling Du Plessis to "stop acting like a child" and sign a contract. Du Plessis fired back questioning why Borralho thinks his name is even part of any negotiations and challenged him to show up at the gym, which he claimed was 30 minutes away. Meanwhile, several insiders have reported that a bout between Du Plessis and Kamaru Usman is in development. The post also notes that Shavkat Rakhmonov has concerned fans with rehabilitation footage showing him far from fighting condition, having not competed in over 18 months.
Caio Borralho took his middleweight rivalry with Dricus Du Plessis off the internet and into South Africa, traveling to Du Plessis's home country in an apparent bid to pressure the former champion into signing a fight contract — and the two quickly turned to social media to continue the confrontation.
Borralho, 33, carries an 18-2 record and sits fourth in the middleweight rankings. The Brazilian southpaw out of The Fighting Nerds lands 3.44 significant strikes per minute at 56 percent accuracy, and he has made clear he believes a title shot is within reach.
Du Plessis, ranked second at middleweight and seventh pound-for-pound, holds a 23-3 record. The 32-year-old South African switch-hitter is one of the division's most active strikers, averaging 5.18 significant strikes per minute, and also threatens consistently on the ground with 2.22 takedown attempts per 15 minutes. Rather than engage with Borralho's call-out on contractual terms, Du Plessis invited him to come spar at his gym — roughly 30 minutes away — and offered to post the footage publicly. Borralho shot back, telling Du Plessis to stop acting like a child and put pen to paper instead. Du Plessis responded by questioning why Borralho believes he is part of any current negotiations at all.
Those negotiations, according to multiple insiders, appear to center on a different opponent entirely. Reports indicate that a matchup between Du Plessis and former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is in development, which may explain Du Plessis's dismissiveness toward Borralho's push.
Why it matters
- A Du Plessis vs. Usman booking, if confirmed, would likely bypass Borralho despite his top-five ranking.
- Borralho pressing his case publicly could keep him visible in title discussions if that pairing falls through.
- Separately, welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov, ranked third at 170 pounds and still undefeated at 19-0, has drawn concern from fans after rehabilitation footage surfaced showing him far from fight-ready, with the Kazakh not having competed in over 18 months.
