Tag: dricus du plessis

Brendan Allen Highlights What ‘Insanely Lucky’ Dricus Du Plessis’ UFC 305 Defense Against Israel Adesanya Will Come Down To (Exclusive)

UFC middleweight contender Brendan Allen believes the result of Dricus Du Plessis’ upcoming first title defense will be determined by which version of Israel Adesanya shows up. Seven months on from reaching the throne with his perfect UFC record intact, Du Plessis will look to add another achievement to his ever-growing résumé on mixed martial […]

Continue Reading Brendan Allen Highlights What ‘Insanely Lucky’ Dricus Du Plessis’ UFC 305 Defense Against Israel Adesanya Will Come Down To (Exclusive) at MMA News.

UFC middleweight contender Brendan Allen believes the result of Dricus Du Plessis’ upcoming first title defense will be determined by which version of Israel Adesanya shows up.

Seven months on from reaching the throne with his perfect UFC record intact, Du Plessis will look to add another achievement to his ever-growing résumé on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage by successfully defending the title for the first time.

To do so, the South African is tasked with stalling the three-time ambitions of Adesanya in the main event of Saturday’s UFC 305 pay-per-view, set for the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.

In the lead-up to his comeback from an 11-month layoff post-shock defeat to Sean Strickland, Adesanya has dismissed regaining the 185-pound gold as being his focus, instead stating that he’s back to “take heads.”

Whatever his motivation is, Allen thinks it has to be strong enough to bring back the formidable Adesanya who got the better of names like Alex Pereira and Paulo Costa if he’s to have his hand raised on August 17…

Allen On Du Plessis vs. Adesanya: ‘If It’s The Motivated Izzy…’

During a recent interview with MMA News’ Ryan Jarrell, Allen looked ahead to the upcoming championship contest in his division.

The #7-ranked contender suggested the result will be determined by which iteration of Adesanya returns to action. Rejuvenated and motivated? ‘And new’. Lackluster? ‘And still’.

“To be honest, I really don’t care (who wins). I don’t like either one of them,” Allen told MMA News. “I’m gonna watch it, of course, because I want to see. But I don’t care. I think we’ll see what Izzy comes back and how he’s been. I think that’s a big tell; what Izzy comes back. Is it a resurged, re-energized Izzy? Or is it like, ‘I don’t know if I wanna be here.’ It’s easy to talk it, it’s easy to watch it, it’s easy to fake it. But you can’t fake it when it’s fight time. That’s the only time we’ll know for sure.

“Obviously Dricus is super confident. He’s at the height of his career. He’s insanely confident, insanely lucky,” Allen continued. “I don’t know, man. I don’t really care who wins. To me, it just depends which Izzy comes back. if it’s the motivated Izzy, I would say Izzy. If it’s the Izzy that fought like, Paulo or Alex the last time, that Izzy is a tough Izzy to beat, man. … If it’s the lackluster one, i don’t think he’s gonna win. Dricus is just gonna keep pushing the pace.”

Allen will be hoping to book his spot opposite the winner down the line by having his hand raised at the expense of Nassourdine Imavov in Paris next month. Success in that regard would leave “All In” on an eight-fight win streak.

But before attention on the middleweight division turns to that co-headliner in the French capital this fall, all eyes are on the impending grudge match between Du Plessis and Adesanya Down Under.

Continue Reading Brendan Allen Highlights What ‘Insanely Lucky’ Dricus Du Plessis’ UFC 305 Defense Against Israel Adesanya Will Come Down To (Exclusive) at MMA News.

PHOTOS: Dricus Du Plessis & Israel Adesanya’s Custom Shorts For UFC 305

UFC 305 headliners Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya will be the latest to enter the Octagon with custom-designed fight gear. For a while, featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell marked the only athlete who made the walk in custom shorts, donning his camouflage gear to the cage. This year, however, the promotion and its uniform partner […]

Continue Reading PHOTOS: Dricus Du Plessis & Israel Adesanya’s Custom Shorts For UFC 305 at MMA News.

UFC 305 headliners Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya will be the latest to enter the Octagon with custom-designed fight gear.

For a while, featherweight contender Bryce Mitchell marked the only athlete who made the walk in custom shorts, donning his camouflage gear to the cage. This year, however, the promotion and its uniform partner Venum have expanded that in a big way.

UFC Bantamweight Champion Sean O’Malley was the first in 2024, receiving bright pink shorts for his title defense against Marlon Vera in Miami this past March. The following month, Alex Pereira, Zhang Weili, Justin Gaethje, and Max Holloway all wore custom kits at the milestone UFC 300 event at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.

Dustin Poirier was next with floral shorts at UFC 302, while UFC 303 later in June saw Ian Garry in purple gear. Last month, meanwhile, saw Leon Edwards and Paddy Pimblett given custom gear for their home fights at UFC 304 in Manchester.

The initiative shows no signs of slowing, and the latest reveal ahead of the UFC 305 pay-per-view has displayed the shorts that will be worn by Du Plessis and Adesanya as they duke it out for the middleweight championship.

“Stillknocks” and “The Last Stylebender” will look to settle their grudge from last year when they headline this weekend’s event in Perth, Australia.

While they top the lineup with gold on the line, the likes of former flyweight title challenger Steve Erceg, lightweight fan favorite Dan Hooker, and hard-hitting heavyweight Tai Tuivasa will also be among those in action.

MMA Fans React To Du Plessis, Adesanya’s Custom UFC 305 Shorts: ‘Best Ones So Far’

Plenty in the mixed martial arts community flocked to social media to give their thoughts on the latest custom shorts. And by the looks of things, the designs went down well…

Continue Reading PHOTOS: Dricus Du Plessis & Israel Adesanya’s Custom Shorts For UFC 305 at MMA News.

Robert Whittaker On The ‘Million Dollar Question’ That Could Determine Who Wins UFC 305 Main Event

Robert Whittaker has his eyes firmly set on the upcoming middleweight title clash between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya, which will headline UFC 305, and for good reason. Recently, he shared his thoughts on how this highly anticipated bout might unfold. “Stillknocks” is poised to put his middleweight title on the line for the […]

Continue Reading Robert Whittaker On The ‘Million Dollar Question’ That Could Determine Who Wins UFC 305 Main Event at MMA News.

Robert Whittaker has his eyes firmly set on the upcoming middleweight title clash between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya, which will headline UFC 305, and for good reason. Recently, he shared his thoughts on how this highly anticipated bout might unfold.

“Stillknocks” is poised to put his middleweight title on the line for the first time in a rivalry-fueled showdown against Adesanya, scheduled for this weekend at the RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia.

Du Plessis was initially lined up to face Adesanya following his knockout win over Whittaker at UFC 290 in July 2023. However, destiny intervened, as an injury sidelined the undefeated South African contender. Meanwhile, “The Last Stylebender” suffered a shocking loss, surrendering his title to Strickland at UFC 293 last September.

Du Plessis marked his victorious comeback by edging out Strickland in a split decision, capturing the 185-pound title at UFC 297 this past January. With renewed confidence, he has boldly declared his belief that he will defeat Adesanya, who is returning to the Octagon after an 11-month self-imposed hiatus—the longest break of his UFC career.

If that scenario unfolds, “Stillknocks” has hinted that his next title defense will likely be against the winner of Whittaker’s upcoming clash with the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev, scheduled for UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi on October 26.

Having squared off against both UFC 305 main eventers—especially Adesanya, whom he’s faced twice—”The Reaper” possesses a rare perspective on the hurdles each will likely face when they clash in the Octagon this Saturday night…

Whittaker Predicts Adesanya’s Lessons From Strickland Loss Could Affect Du Plessis Bout

During a recent appearance on the MMArcade Podcast, Whittaker delved into the upcoming clash between Du Plessis and Adesanya, noting that it’s hard for him to predict a clear winner. The former UFC middleweight champion pointed out that both fighters last stepped into the Octagon against Strickland, but their contrasting strategies led to very different results.

“I guess it’s very hard to put a hard pick on either one of them,” Whittaker said. “But I’ll say all we can look at is historically, like their previous fights. Dricus, in his last fight against Strickland, moved forward, put pressure on Strickland, didn’t let Strickland do that to him, shut his game down, was very aggressive, created that space, and didn’t let Strickland really find the rhythm that he likes to fight in.

Strickland, prior to that fight, fought Adesanya and did exactly that to Israel—pushed into his space and didn’t allow Adesanya to utilize that dangerous space that he likes fighting in. He crowded him to a point where he didn’t let him have any free distancing from the fence so that he could move away. He kept Adesanya’s back to the fence for 90% of the fight and beat Adesanya by decision.”

“The Reaper” went on to highlight that a pivotal aspect of this fight will be whether Adesanya has fine-tuned his skills during his time off after the loss to Strickland. He noted that it will be crucial to see if Adesanya can effectively counter Du Plessis’ relentless pressure and close-quarters exchanges.

“Dricus was able to push that plan against Strickland that Strickland was able to push against Adesanya, so you would have to think Dricus is going to push that same plan on Adesanya. And I guess the million-dollar question is, what has Izzy done in his layoff since the Strickland fight to make sure that doesn’t happen again? Because you can bet your bottom dollar Dricus is going to push into that.”

Continue Reading Robert Whittaker On The ‘Million Dollar Question’ That Could Determine Who Wins UFC 305 Main Event at MMA News.

Rising UFC Middleweight Contender Predicts UFC 305: Du Plessis vs Adesanya: ‘The Two Styles Don’t Match At All…’

One of the biggest fights of the year goes down this weekend at UFC 305 when Dricus Du Plessis looks to defend the middleweight title against Israel Adesanya. The two men have been on a collision course with one another for some time now, with all roads eventually leading to Perth, Australia on August 17. […]

Continue Reading Rising UFC Middleweight Contender Predicts UFC 305: Du Plessis vs Adesanya: ‘The Two Styles Don’t Match At All…’ at MMA News.

One of the biggest fights of the year goes down this weekend at UFC 305 when Dricus Du Plessis looks to defend the middleweight title against Israel Adesanya.

The two men have been on a collision course with one another for some time now, with all roads eventually leading to Perth, Australia on August 17.

However, an interesting match-up doesn’t always make for the greatest of fights, especially when you have someone that is as skilled in one area as Adesanya.

The former two-time champion presents a difficult test for Du Plessis who usually relies on his power, aggression and output to get his hand raised. which won’t be easy against the precision striking of “The Last Stylebender”.

One of the division’s most exciting contenders believes that the clash of styles will end up going the way of the challenger.

Caio Borralho Believes That Israel Adesanya Has The Advantage In This Style Match-up

In a recent interview with Kevin Iole, Caio Borralho said that he believes Adesanya’s style will be a perfect counter to the constant forward motion of the champion.

Borralho has gone 6-0 in the middleweight division and will now look to put himself in the title picture when he faces Jared Cannonier in his first main event spotlight.

He sees that unlike what Sean Strickland was able to do against Adesanya in the shock upset at UFC 293 last year, Du Plessis doesn’t have the right style to stop the former champ from reclaiming the top spot.

“I think this time, I think Adesanya is going to win this fight. I think stylistically, the two styles doesn’t match a little, doesn’t match at all. I think Dricus just goes forward, try to punch and push the pace up, but I think Israel Adesanya is going to manage the distance all the time, circle up and kick a lot on Dricus and I think he can win by decision during the fifth round or maybe a good knockout in the third round if Dricus gets tired.”

Read also: Sean Strickland’s Coach Breaks Down Du Plessis vs. Adesanya: ‘You’re Not Gonna Find Many People That Fight Like Him…’

Continue Reading Rising UFC Middleweight Contender Predicts UFC 305: Du Plessis vs Adesanya: ‘The Two Styles Don’t Match At All…’ at MMA News.

UFC Full Fight: Relive Dricus Du Plessis’ Title Win Over Sean Strickland Ahead Of His UFC 305 Defense 

UFC 305 headliner Dricus Du Plessis achieved his title ambitions on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage this past January. The middleweight champion will return in the main event of this weekend’s pay-per-view card at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, where he’s tasked with defending his belt in a grudge match against Israel Adesanya. The South African’s […]

Continue Reading UFC Full Fight: Relive Dricus Du Plessis’ Title Win Over Sean Strickland Ahead Of His UFC 305 Defense  at MMA News.

UFC 305 headliner Dricus Du Plessis achieved his title ambitions on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage this past January.

The middleweight champion will return in the main event of this weekend’s pay-per-view card at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, where he’s tasked with defending his belt in a grudge match against Israel Adesanya.

The South African’s first chance to extend his reign comes seven months on from his crowning at UFC 297 in Toronto, Canada. He headlined the promotion’s first PPV of 2024 in competition for the 185-pound gold, which was then held by Sean Strickland.

“Stillknocks” brought the American’s divisional rule to a quick end, falling on the right side of a split decision after five rounds of competitive action to rip the title from Strickland’s grasp in his very first defense.

Ahead of Saturday’s event, the promotion has released the full Du Plessis vs. Strickland fight from UFC 297 on its official YouTube channel.

Du Plessis will now look to ensure he achieves a feat that Strickland failed to this year by recording a successful defense. To do so, he must stall Adesanya’s push for a historic three-time title crowning.

The Nigerian-New Zealander will be making his return after losing the belt to Strickland close to a year ago. To regain it, Adesanya has his South African rival’s UFC 0 in his sights.

Continue Reading UFC Full Fight: Relive Dricus Du Plessis’ Title Win Over Sean Strickland Ahead Of His UFC 305 Defense  at MMA News.

Dricus du Plessis Stats: UFC 305 Champion Breakdown

Dricus du Plessis Stats: UFC 305 Championship BreakdownAhead of UFC 305, let’s take a look at some Dricus du Plessis Stats. The UFC world champion has…

Dricus du Plessis Stats: UFC 305 Championship Breakdown

Ahead of UFC 305, let’s take a look at some Dricus du Plessis Stats. The UFC world champion has made a splash in the world of MMA with his impressive win streak cutting through the middleweight division. This weekend, the South African athlete will look to defend his crown against the former middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya.

Dricus du Plessis Stats

Before making his debut in the UFC, Dricus du Plessis had earned titles in EFC and KSW. Once he started his run through the middleweight division, the South African-born fighter was able to defeat notable opponents such as Derek Brunson, Darren Till, and Robert Whittaker, before capturing the title against Sean Strickland. He competed in Judo and Wrestling when he was young and would add K-1 Kickboxing later to his repertoire.

Dricus du Plessis Stats: He has a significant strike rate of 6.49 per minute with a striking accuracy of 50%. Defensively, he absorbs 4.77 significant strikes per minute while maintaining a significant strike defense rate of 55%. In fact, among all middleweights in UFC history, Dricus Du Plessis holds the record for most significant strikes landed per minute.

In terms of grappling, which is his base, Du Plessis averages 3.00 takedowns per 15 minutes with a takedown accuracy of 51%. However, his takedown defense stands at 40%. Additionally, he attempts an average of 0.8 submissions per 15 minutes, showcasing his capability to threaten opponents with submission holds.

Dricus du Plessis Height and Reach

The 30-year-old Dricus Du Plessis is a switch fighter, he will rotate between southpaw and orthodox stances. Standing at 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighing 185 pounds. That is 1.83 m and 84 kg. More Dricus du Plessis Stats, he has a reach of 76 inches, 193 cm.

Dricus du Plessis Record

Overall in MMA, ‘Stillknocks‘ Dricus du Plessis’ Record is 21-2-0, meaning 21 victories with 2 losses and no draws. In the UFC, he has a perfect record of 7-0. He tends to finish his fight as only two of his wins have gone to decision, while 9 were won by knockout and 10 were won via submission.

dricus du plessis

More Dricus du Plessis Stats:

Where is Dricus Du Plessis from?

Dricus Du Plessis is from South Africa. He was born in Welkom, Orange Free State, South Africa. Today he lives in Hatfield, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.

How Old is Dricus Du Plessis?

Thirty years old.

Dricus du Plessis laughs off Islam Makahchev middleweight threat: 'Everybody can dream'

At UFC 305, upcoming on Saturday, Dricus du Plessis will look to defend his UFC middleweight world title against the Nigerian-Kiwi sharpshooter Israel Adesanya.