Dricus du Plessis has ramped up his rivalry with incoming UFC 305 headliner, Israel Adesanya following last night’s tense pre-fight press conference in Perth, poking funat the ex-champion’s warning against “kissing” him during their heated staredown.
du Plessis, the current undisputed middleweight champion, is slated to make his return in August, taking on former two-weight titleholder, Adesanya in his first defense of the divisional throne.
Winning his crown back in January in the main event of UFC 297, du Plessis took home a close, split decision win over common-foe, Sean Strickland, minting himself as the undisputed middleweight champion to boot.
And sharing the stage with City Kickboxing striker, Adesanya overnight at their pre-fight press conference ahead of UFC 305 – du Plessis was once more accused of disrespecting former champions hailing from Africa – namely Kamaru Usman, Francis Ngannou, and the above-mentioned, Adesanya.
Setting the tone from then on out for a heated staredown at center stage, du Plessis and Adesanya held a stare for minutes with promtoional officials attempting to separate the duo – ultimately to no avail.
Dricus du Plessis pokes fun at Israel Adesanya once more
Engaging in a brief spat of back-and-forth verbals, Pretoria native, du Plessis – who has yet to suffer defeat inside the Octagon, claimed Adesanya urged him not to lock lips during their face-off, before he then hit out at prior accusations of the ex-champion kissing his dog.
“I think he (Israel Adesanya) said, ‘Don’t kiss me,’” Dricus du Plessis told Submission Radio. “As far as I know, he said, ‘Don’t go kissing me now,’ I said, ‘I’m no dog, so i won’t.’ I don’t know what he was saying. I wasn’t really focused on what he was saying. I didn’t say anything. You know, I’m not here to say anything to him. The date is set. There’s no need to be saying anything.”
Who wins at UFC 305 next month: Dricus du Plessis or Israel Adesanya?