Tag: UFC 312

What’s Next After UFC 311? Full Confirmed UFC 312 Main Card For Sydney On Feb. 8

UFC 311 is in the books, meaning attention will soon turn to the mixed martial arts leader’s next pay-per-view offering, UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia. The promotion was in Los Angeles this past week, where the Intuit Dome played host to a number of intriguing matchups for its opening numbered event of the new year. Of note […]

UFC 311 is in the books, meaning attention will soon turn to the mixed martial arts leader’s next pay-per-view offering, UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia.

The promotion was in Los Angeles this past week, where the Intuit Dome played host to a number of intriguing matchups for its opening numbered event of the new year. Of note were headline wins for Islam Makhachev and Merab Dvalishvili, as well as important victories for Ji?í Procházka, Jailton Almeida, and Reinier de Ridder.

While the aftermath of the Jan. 18 card is currently the talk of the town, it won’t be long until focus sways to the next PPV, and from the lightweight title picture to the middleweight championship conversation.

At UFC 312, set for the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney on Feb. 8, reigning kingpin Dricus Du Plessis will open his account for the new year, once again in defense of his 185-pound gold. After following his crowning against Sean Strickland with a retention opposite Israel Adesanya, the South African will next run it back with Strickland.

Stakes will also be high in the co-headliner, as two-time strawweight champ Zhang Weili looks to defend her gold for the third time since winning it back at the expense of Carla Esparza in 2022. In her way of a continued reign will be the undefeated Tatiana Suarez.

Tafa, Crute, Matthews Set The Stage For High-Profile Headliners At UFC 312

Before Du Plessis and Weili defend their belts, a number of local names will take to the Octagon looking to make the most of their position on the major UFC 312 card.

That includes heavyweight powerhouse Justin Tafa. Against undefeated newcomer Tallison Teixeira, the Australian-Samoan will look to bounce back from a decision loss to Karl Williams last March and return to the knockout ways that saw him sleep Austen Lane, Parker Porter, and Harry Hunsucker during a four-fight unbeaten streak between 2021 and 2023.

Prior to that, another home favorite will be in action as light heavyweight Jimmy Crute returns almost two years on from a submission loss to Alonzo Menifield. “The Brute” hasn’t tasted victory since a 2020 KO of Modestas Bukauskas that left him 12-1 and among the most promising prospects at 205 pounds. To revive his career amid a four-fight winless run, the 28-year-old must stall the charge of former LFA champion Rodolfo Bellato.

And opening the UFC 312 main card will be Jake Matthews, a longtime Australian prospect who has failed to live up to his promise thus far. “The Celtic Kid” has exchanged wins and losses across six fights since his most recent winning streak in 2020, and against Francisco Prado next month, he’ll be looking to build some momentum following a decision victory over Phil Rowe last time out.

Those pairings have currently gotten the nod to feature on the main card over another Aussie in Jack Jenkins, who is slated to top the prelims against Gabriel Santos.

See below for the full UFC 312 card, as it stands.

Main Card:

  • Dricus Du Plessis (C) vs. Sean Strickland (middleweight championship)
  • Zhang Weili (C) vs. Tatiana Suarez (strawweight championship)
  • Justin Tafa vs. Tallison Teixeira (heavyweight)
  • Jimmy Crute vs. Rodolfo Bellato (light heavyweight)
  • Jake Matthews vs. Francisco Prado (welterweight)

Preliminary Card:

  • Jack Jenkins vs. Gabriel Santos (featherweight)
  • Cody Haddon vs. Aleksandre Topuria (bantamweight)
  • Tom Nolan vs. Viacheslav Borshchev (lightweight)
  • HyunSung Park vs. Nyamjargal Tumendemberel (flyweight)

Early Preliminary Card:

  • Quillan Salkilld vs. Anshul Jubli (lightweight)
  • Kevin Jousset vs. Jonathan Micallef (welterweight)
  • Wang Cong vs. Bruna Brasil (flyweight)
  • Rongzhu vs. Kody Steele (lightweight)
Justin Tafa
Image: Esther Lin/MMA Fighting

Sean Strickland’s Coach Explains Picking Dricus Du Plessis As ‘Toughest Challenge’ Over Khamzat Chimaev

Sean Strickland is set to challenge for the UFC middleweight title for the second time in his upcoming rematch with Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 312. The former champion stuck to the idea that he would wait for his shot at “Stillknocks” following his win over Paulo Costa in June and it paid off for […]

Sean Strickland is set to challenge for the UFC middleweight title for the second time in his upcoming rematch with Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 312. The former champion stuck to the idea that he would wait for his shot at “Stillknocks” following his win over Paulo Costa in June and it paid off for him with the fight being announced this past weekend at UFC 310.

For his head coach at Xtreme Couture, Eric Nicksick, the next few months will be all about looking at what they need to do differently in order to defeat Du Plessis in Sydney, Australia. Their first meeting at UFC 297 came down to a close split decision that saw the South African become the 185-pound champion.

For several weeks following his submission win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 308, it looked like the promotion might be heading towards Khamzat Chimaev as the next title challenger for Du Plessis. Though they aren’t thinking about it right now, both teams will know that if they come out on top in February, Chimaev will likely be their next opponent.

Nicksick spoke in a recent interview with Submission Radio about which opponent is a bigger threat to Strickland out of the current champion and the other top contender in the division. He explained why in his opinion, as of right now, Du Plessis is their biggest challenge.

“I mean, you would have to say [Dricus du Plessis] because he won, he beat us. Right now you have to say that [he’s the tougher matchup] because that’s the task at hand. I think Khamzat presents tons of different variables to his style that we’re gonna have to look at how to break down once that challenge presents itself. But right now, DDP is the toughest challenge for us.”

Dricus Du Plessis Calls Sean Strickland’s Style ‘Boring’ and ‘Unentertaining’ – ‘I’m Here to Give Fans a Show’

Dricus Du Plessis Calls Sean Strickland’s Style ‘Boring’ and ‘Unentertaining’ - ‘I’m Here to Give Fans a Show’Dricus Du Plessis isn’t particularly fond of Sean Strickland’s pitter-pattering inside the Octagon. After securing a split decision victory…

Dricus Du Plessis Calls Sean Strickland’s Style ‘Boring’ and ‘Unentertaining’ - ‘I’m Here to Give Fans a Show’

Dricus Du Plessis isn’t particularly fond of Sean Strickland’s pitter-pattering inside the Octagon.

After securing a split decision victory over Strickland last January to claim the middleweight title, the two will run it back on February 8 when the promotion heads back to Sydney, Australia for UFC 312.

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In the time since their initial five-round affair, Du Plessis has logged a fourth-round submission victory over two-time titleholder Israel Adesanya while ‘Tarzan’ added yet another split decision win to his resume, besting Paulo Costa in June.

Strickland’s scrap against Costa left a lot to be desired and ‘DDP’ didn’t shy away from throwing some shade at Strickland for overpromising and under-delivering in yet another fight.

“Yeah, I mean, Paulo Costa and Strickland’s last fight… I mean, nothing’s changed. And that’s, that’s… that’s… no, it looked boring like every other fight,” Du Plessis said during an interview on FOX Sports Australia. “Walking forward, jabbing, tipping, it wasn’t an exciting fight. And then you look at the Sean fight, people go like, ‘Did you see that last 30 seconds?’ I say 30 seconds. It’s a five-rounder, and Sean goes…

“No, it was a bad performance from his side. It wasn’t a bad performance. It was the most normal performance for him ever. You know, in our fight, I remember there was a stage in the fight where I was walking forward, but he just kept moving away and moving away, and I thought to myself, ‘I’m gonna stand here, maybe he gets the confidence to walk forward and then we can, you know, punch it out.’ And he just dropped his hands a little and said, ‘Cool.’ He has no problem with the crowd booing his fighting style. He has no problem with that.

“Unfortunately for me, I don’t… I don’t have that in me. I’m there to entertain. I’m there to give the fans a show, and, uh, I’m not there just to win fights. That is only 50% of our jobs: to win that fight. The other 50% is going out there and giving a show, like I always do.”

Du Plessis continues to slam split-decision machine Sean Strickland

Despite his tough talk on social media and a penchant for KOing his sparring partners, Strickland rarely brings that same energy inside the Octagon. Through 22 career fights under the UFC banner, he has only ended things inside the distance five times, including four knockouts and one submission.

Strickland’s last finish came against Abus Magomedov in July 2023. Before that, you’d have to go all the way back to November 2020 when he TKO’d Brendan Allen in the second round of a Fight Night scrap in Las Vegas.

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“Now sure, like I said, his fighting style was very, very effective in avoiding damage and, you know, winning by decision,” Du Plessis continued. “The man has eight split-decision victories. I mean, that in itself has to tell you why, um… or split-decision a fight in the UFC? That in itself has to tell you, listen, the man’s not going out there to finish fights or to entertain.

“Now, is he more entertaining in a fight? Definitely more than he is in the fight. I have to say that. But, you know, it’s effective and it works for him, I guess.”

Meanwhile, ‘Stillknocks’ has a 75% finish rate in the UFC, putting away six of his eight opponents, including Darren Till, Derek Brunson, Robert Whittaker, and ‘The Last Stylebender.’ Overall, Du Plessis has 20 career finishes against 22 total victories, making him one of the UFC’s most prolific finishers.

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Robert Whittaker Gives Strickland ‘Props’ For Sticking To His Guns, Predicts Du Plessis Rematch

Just over a year on from their first meeting, middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and former titleholder Sean Strickland are set to meet in a rematch at UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia. Following his bounce back win over Paulo Costa in June, Strickland has remained confident that he deserved the opportunity to fight for the […]

Just over a year on from their first meeting, middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and former titleholder Sean Strickland are set to meet in a rematch at UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia. Following his bounce back win over Paulo Costa in June, Strickland has remained confident that he deserved the opportunity to fight for the title again.

His first encounter with “Stillknocks” at UFC 297 went the way of the South African via a split decision and though the fight was close, there weren’t a ton of people calling for the rematch to take place. This was especially true following Khamzat Chimaev’s recent win over Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 where Du Plessis said himself that a matchup with the undefeated contender would excite him more than running it back with Strickland.

In a recent episode of his MMArcade Podcast, Whittaker gave his reaction to the fight announcement. The former champion took his hat off to Strickland for sticking to his guns and getting what he asked for even when it looked like it might slip away from him.

“I’m surprised Sean just literally sat out. Like everyone was laughing at him when he said, ‘I’m going to sit out till I get my title shot.’ Dude straight up got a title shot, props for that. You got to give it him, guy like straight up stuck by what he said.”

Despite this, Whittaker isn’t sure that Strickland will be able to make the adjustments needed to reclaim the middleweight title.

“In my opinion, I don’t see the fight going any different. Du Plessis is such a dog in there, he’s going to come with the same aggressiveness and game plan. What could Sean do differently to change the outcome than last time? Okay because if we look at it, it doesn’t happen often but the challenger beats a champion by decision, okay. Du Plessis did that and now he’s a champion and that was a close first fight, you know what I mean. You see where I’m angling with this. I just don’t know what Sean can do differently to change the outcome from happening again.”

Dricus Du Plessis On UFC Dismissing His Chimaev Preference For Next Defense: ‘Just For Clarification…’ 

UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis insists he is not “unhappy” about the promotion’s decision regarding his next challenger. During this past weekend’s pay-per-view broadcast, it was announced that Du Plessis will return to Australia — the site of his successful first defense against Israel Adesanya in August — to headline UFC 312 at Sydney’s […]

UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis insists he is not “unhappy” about the promotion’s decision regarding his next challenger.

During this past weekend’s pay-per-view broadcast, it was announced that Du Plessis will return to Australia — the site of his successful first defense against Israel Adesanya in August — to headline UFC 312 at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena.

Against him will be former champ Sean Strickland, who staked his claim for a chance at redemption opposite the man who dethroned him this past January when he outpointed Paulo Costa in a lackluster affair four months later. But while his shot has ultimately come to fruition, there was some doubt prior to the recent reveal.

The undefeated Khamzat Chimaev ran through Robert Whittaker in quick time at UFC 308 in October, garnering support for his claim to the next opportunity at Du Plessis’ belt. Even the champ himself made it clear that he favored a first-time clash with “Borz.”

But although that evidently fell on deaf ears, the South African says he’s more than happy to beat whomever the UFC places in front of him.

“Just for clarification, I preferred the Khamzat fight but the rematch is a fight most wanted before Khamzat vs (Whittaker),” Du Plessis wrote on X. “I’m not unhappy with the UFC’s decision. Like I said, I’ll fight the man fans think is the next best guy he was promised the fight so Strickland it is.”

He did, however, reiterate his belief that Strickland is not truly deserving of the shot at UFC 312 in response to a commenter.

“I have to agree with you on that one”

After falling on the right side of a split decision to capture the crown at Strickland’s expense in Canada, “Stillknocks” continued to prove his doubters wrong by submitting former two-time champ Adesanya at UFC 305.

Du Plessis will now look to secure a more definitive victory over Strickland to extend his lead in their rivalry to 2-0, before likely turning attention to Chimaev later in the year.

Dricus Du Plessis Reacts To Confirmation Of Sean Strickland Rematch: ‘They’ll Call It Attempted Murder…’ 

UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis is looking to put a stamp on his rivalry with Sean Strickland when they run it back early next year. As 2024 approaches its conclusion, Du Plessis already has his first assignment of the new year in the calendar. After being crowned 185-pound kingpin this past January and subsequently […]

UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis is looking to put a stamp on his rivalry with Sean Strickland when they run it back early next year.

As 2024 approaches its conclusion, Du Plessis already has his first assignment of the new year in the calendar. After being crowned 185-pound kingpin this past January and subsequently defending that status against Israel Adesanya in Australia seven months later, “Stillknocks” will return Down Under.

The promotion confirmed during this past weekend’s pay-per-view broadcast that Du Plessis will headline February’s UFC 312 event in Sydney, running it back with the man at the expense of whom he won the middleweight belt, the #1-ranked Strickland.

Reacting to that announcement on social media this week, the South African vowed to record a more definitive triumph over the polarizing American former champ.

“This time they won’t call it a robbery, they’ll call it attempted murder. #UFC312 #preparetobeamazed”

The pair first met in Strickland’s sole title defense in Canada, with the then-challenger falling on the right side of a split decision verdict following five rounds of close and competitive action.

While “Tarzan’s” only bout since then saw him emerge victorious from a lackluster contest with Paulo Costa, he’s gotten the nod for a shot at redemption opposite Du Plessis over Khamzat Chimaev, whose own claim to an opportunity gained support after he ran through Robert Whittaker in October.

Du Plessis vs. Strickland 2 will top a lineup that features two title fights, the other being a highly anticipated strawweight championship contest between Zhang Weili and the undefeated Tatiana Suarez.