Stillknocks” Dricus Du Plessis was congratulated on his title win by the president of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa. Live from Perth, Australia, Du Plessis defended his middleweight championship at UFC 305 with a submission against the former champion Israel Adesanya.
President of South Africa Congratulates Dricus Du Plessis
Leading into UFC 305, there was a series of trash talk regarding whether or not Dricus Du Plessis was truly African as he is a white person. The Nigerian-Kiwi Adesanya felt that “Stillknocks” does not represent Africa which Du Plessis didn’t understand as he was born and still lives in South Africa.
After the fight, the two fighters had a great showing of respect for each other. Du Plessis said that it was an honor to share the cage with Adesanya while the Nigerian Kiwi said that tonight Africa won.
After UFC 305, the South African-born athlete got some high praise. The president of South Africa congratulated Dricus Du Plessis on his impressive win and representing the nation. On X, formerly Twitter, Cyril Ramaphosa said:
Congratulations, Dricus Du Plessis, on retaining your UFC middleweight world championship with a submission in #UFC305. As a bonus, you kept our Flag flying hours after the Springboks scored an historic a 2-0 series win in Perth as well. We couldn’t wish for a better day in the office.
Australia and South Africa have long had a bitter sports rivalry in Rugby and Cricket. Recently, the South African rugby team, known as the Springboks, defeated the Australian team, the Wallabies. This match was part of a series, and South Africa’s win in Perth marked a 2-0 series victory over Australia
Cyril Ramaphosa is proud of his nation, having Rugby wins and Dricus Du Plessis’s victory on the same weekend. Nelson Mandela had Ramaphosa as secretary general when he was in office. After a lifetime in South African politics, he was elected president in 2018.