Reinier de Ridder will turn his attention to a middleweight title shot next, after beating former champion Robert Whittaker in the main event of UFC Abu Dhabi.

In the UFC on ABC 9 main event Saturday, de Ridder (21-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) defeated former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker (26-9 MMA, 17-7 UFC) over five rounds. The decision was a split set of 48-47 scorecards. The event took place at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Reinier de Ridder remained undefeated in the UFC with a hard-fought split decision victory over former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in a grueling five-round affair. While he did get absolutely bombed with a punch that knocked him to the ground in the third round,