Off the back of his UFC 297 championship victory over the course of the weekend, Dricus du Plessis has officially opened as a betting underdog to beat former two-time divisional best, Israel Adesanya in an expected title fight between the two rivals next.
du Plessis, who headlined UFC 297 last weekend in Toronto, emerged with the undisputed middleweight title in tow, landing a close, contentious split decision win over defending champion, Sean Strickland over the course of five rounds in their Canada clash.
As for Adesanya, the City Kickboxing striker has been sidelined since he dropped the crown to the aforenoted common-foe, Strickland back in September at UFC 293, in one of the biggest title fight upsets in the history of the organization.
Israel Adesanya opens as close betting favorite
And despite his championship fight loss to Strickland – which came as a record-setting second in the space of a calendar years, opening odds have Israel Adesanya placed as a close -105 betting favorite to beat newly-crowned gold holder, Dricus du Plessis, with the Pretoria native a +115 betting underdog.
Linked with a UFC 300 headliner in a quickfire April grudge title fight between the two, the ultimate VIP betting experiences online can help fans land the biggest payouts in a world of interesting outright bets and prop specifics – ahead of what promises to be the most high-profile pay-per-view event of the year for the Dana White-led promotion
Issuing an immediate call out in the direction of Nigerian-Kiwi striker, Adesanya off the back of his title fight win over Strickland, du Plessis urged the former to get up off the couch amid his title fight loss late last year, in a bid to settle their long-standing rivalry.
Sharing the Octagon back in July of last year following his stunning UFC 290 win over Robert Whittaker, Pretoria native, du Plessis was gearing up for a title clash with then-champion, Adesanya, however, a lingering injury suffered ahead of the bout forced him to miss a September turnaround.
Already knocking back the advances from the likes of unbeaten middleweight contender, Khamzat Chimaev in the wake of his championship win in ‘The Great White North’, du Plessis has been pursued already by former middleweight kingpin and current light heavyweight best, Alex Pereira.
And furthermore, former champion, Whittaker has staked his claim for another shot at South African favorite, du Plessis after their International Fight Week clash last summer, claiming his preparation for the officially-billed championship-eliminator was less than lax.
Hinting at a potential return in a title battle against du Plessis, Israel Adesanya received flak across social media earlier this week, after posting footage of him reacting to the UFC 297 title fight – where he was left in hysterics after mocking Strickland’s championship loss in his first attempted title fight defense.
Teasing a return on his official Instagram account, Israel Adesanya, who claimed he would be sidelined from full-time training until the end of February, appeared to let fans privy on an incoming return to camp for a competition comeback.
Who wins in a future title affair: Dricus du Plessis or Israel Adesanya?