Dricus du Plessis News

Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland, UFC, UFC 297, Pros react
UFC

Dricus du Plessis is determined to get UFC South Africa: "If I have to wait it out a couple of months, I'm willing to do that"

Josh Evanoff - February 2, 2024

Middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis badly wants to get the UFC to his home country. ‘Stillknocks’ is fresh off his return to the cage last month at UFC 297 in Canada. There, Dricus du Plessis fought in his first title fight, against middleweight champion Sean Strickland. For ‘Tarzan’, the title defense was his first since capturing the championship with an upset win over Israel Adesanya last September.

Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland
Sean Strickland

Dricus Du Plessis claims Sean Strickland admitted he lost before UFC 297 scorecards were read

Cole Shelton - January 26, 2024

Dricus Du Plessis says Sean Strickland admitted defeat after their middleweight title fight at UFC 297 went the distance. Strickland was looking to defend his title for the first time against Du Plessis and their highly anticipated bout resulted in a back-and-forth scrap. When the final bell rang many were torn on who won, as it likely came down to the second round.

Israel Adesanya vs. Dricus du Plessis
Israel Adesanya

Robert Whittaker explains why he’s picking “awkward” Dricus du Plessis to defeat Israel Adesanya

Harry Kettle - January 26, 2024

UFC star Robert Whittaker has explained why he’s picking Dricus du Plessis to defeat Israel Adesanya in their rumored showdown. Last weekend, Dricus du Plessis made a pretty emphatic statement when defeated Sean Strickland to become the new UFC middleweight champion. The win completed his meteoric rise to the top of the 185-pound division.

Dricus Du Plessis
UFC

WATCH | Dricus Du Plessis gets incredible reception as he returns to South Africa with UFC title

Cole Shelton - January 25, 2024

Dricus Du Plessis got a hero’s welcome in South Africa after becoming the UFC middleweight champion at UFC 297. Du Plessis scored a split-decision win over Sean Strickland on Saturday night to become the promotion’s new 185lbs champion. After the win, he stayed in Toronto for a couple of days to celebrate. When he returned home, ‘DDP’ got an incredible reception as it looked like hundreds, if not thousands of people were there to welcome Du Plessis back to South Africa.

Israel Adesanya, Dricus du Plessis
Israel Adesanya

WATCH: Israel Adesanya and Dricus du Plessis train together in old sparring footage

Josh Evanoff - January 23, 2024

The rivalry between UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis and Israel Adesanya has been a long one. ‘Stillknocks’ is fresh off his return at UFC 297 over the weekend, against Sean Strickland. For ‘Tarzan’ the bout was his first since a unanimous decision win over Israel Adesanya in September, which saw him win middleweight gold. Unfortunately for Strickland, his title reign is now over thanks to Dricus du Plessis.

Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland, UFC, UFC 297, Pros react
Henry Cejudo

Henry Cejudo advises Dricus du Plessis who he should fight next: “Tell this dude to take a hike”

Harry Kettle - January 23, 2024

Former two-weight UFC champion Henry Cejudo has given Dricus du Plessis some advice regarding his next opponent. Following his win over Sean Strickland at UFC 297, there are a lot of options on the table for Dricus du Plessis. The South African sensation is the new UFC middleweight champion, and he has plenty of people chasing him.

Dricus Du Plessis, UFC 297, UFC
Dricus du Plessis

Daniel Cormier praises Dricus du Plessis following his title win at UFC 297: “I never thought that we’d be here today”

Harry Kettle - January 23, 2024

UFC commentator Daniel Cormier has praised Dricus du Plessis following his big title win at UFC 297. Last Saturday night, Dricus du Plessis finally made it to the top of the mountain. The South African superstar won the UFC middleweight championship, defeating Sean Strickland in an incredibly close decision. In doing so, he became the first fighter from his country to win a UFC belt and the fourth African fighter to accomplish that goal.

Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland UFC 297
Mayra Bueno Silva

What's next for the stars of UFC 297?

Cole Shelton - January 22, 2024

The first UFC pay-per-view event of 2024 went down on Saturday night in Toronto and saw two title fights headline the card. In the main event of UFC 297, Sean Strickland was looking to defend his middleweight title against Dricus Du Plessis, while the co-main event saw Raquel Pennington take on Mayra Bueno Silva for the vacant women’s bantamweight title.

Khamzat Chimaev, Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland
Khamzat Chimaev

Khamzat Chimaev believes Sean Strickland beat Dricus Du Plessis, calls out the South African for UFC 300

Cole Shelton - January 22, 2024

Khamzat Chimaev doesn’t think the middleweight belt should have changed hands at UFC 297. In the main event of UFC 297 on Saturday, Sean Strickland was looking to defend his middleweight title for the first time against Dricus Du Plessis. The fight was a pick’em on the betting odds, as people were torn between who would win, and the scrap ended up being very competitive as expected.

Dricus Du Plessis, Alex Pereira and Drake
Dricus du Plessis

Dricus Du Plessis sends messages to Alex Pereira and Drake following title win at UFC 297: “I dare you”

Cole Shelton - January 22, 2024

UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis sent messages to both Alex Pereira and Drake following his UFC 297 title win. In the main event of the pay-per-view card from Toronto, Du Plessis scored a split-decision win over Sean Strickland to become the new 185lbs champion.

Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland, UFC 297, UFC
Sean Strickland

Dricus Du Plessis responds after Sean Strickland calls foul in UFC 297 title loss: “Why don’t you cry about it AGAIN”

Susan Cox - January 22, 2024

Dricus Du Plessis is responding after Sean Strickland called foul on their UFC 297 title fight. UFC 297 took place last Saturday, January 20th and the main event featured a middleweight title fight between Sean Strickland (28-6 MMA) and Dricus Du Plessis (21-2 MMA). The result was a split decision victory for Du Plessis, making him the new UFC middleweight champion.

Dricus Du Plessis, Sean Strickland, UFC 297, Results, UFC
Sean Strickland

Sean Strickland sends a message to Dricus Du Plessis following UFC 297: “The belt they gave you will never make you a champion”

Susan Cox - January 22, 2024

Sean Strickland has sent a message to Dricus Du Plessis following UFC 297. It was just this past Saturday in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that saw Sean Strickland (28-6 MMA) take on Dricus Du Plessis (21-2 MMA) in the main event middleweight title bout.

Ian Garry Sean Strickland
Ian Garry

Ian Machado Garry takes aim at “amateurs” Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis following UFC 297: “If I ever have a fight like that, please tell me to retire”

Harry Kettle - January 22, 2024

UFC star Ian Machado Garry has taken a shot at Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis following their UFC 297 showdown. On Saturday night, Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis went to war in the main event of UFC 297. They battled it out over the UFC middleweight championship, and in the end, it was DDP who had his hand raised as he became the new king at 185 pounds.

Dricus Du Plessis, UFC 297, UFC
UFC

Dricus Du Plessis sends a message to his doubters following title win at UFC 297: "That makes you look like a dumbass!"

Chris Taylor - January 21, 2024

Dricus Du Plessis has sent a message to his doubters following his triumph over Sean Strickland at last night’s UFC 297 event. Du Plessis (21-2 MMA) challenged Strickland (28-6 MMA) for the promotion’s undisputed middleweight world title in the headliner of last night’s pay-per-view event at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

Joe Rogan UFC
Joe Rogan

Joe Rogan reacts to Dricus Du Plessis defeating Sean Strickland at UFC 297

Fernando Quiles - January 21, 2024

UFC color commentator Joe Rogan wasn’t at the booth for UFC 297, but he definitely was paying attention to the main event. In the headliner, Dricus Du Plessis challenged Sean Strickland for the UFC Middleweight Championship. This one went the distance and after five rounds of competitive and bloody action, it was Du Plessis who was awarded the split nod. He is now the new UFC middleweight titleholder.

Dricus Du Plessis Khamzat Chimaev
Khamzat Chimaev

Dricus Du Plessis responds to “see you soon” comment from Khamzat Chimaev: “Who takes that guy seriously anyway?”

Fernando Quiles - January 21, 2024

Newly-minted UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis is not impressed by Khamzat Chimaev teasing a UFC 300 showdown for the 185-pound gold. Du Plessis has now become a target after capturing the UFC Middleweight Championship from Sean Strickland at UFC 297. It was a hard-fought split decision win for “DDP,” who is now hoping to settle his feud with Israel Adesanya. “Izzy,” who is on hiatus, responded to Du Plessis’ post-fight callout on his Instagram Stories with a thumbs up.

Israel Adesanya and Dricus du Plessis
Israel Adesanya

Israel Adesanya responds to callout from UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis: “This arc in my story was written long ago”

Chris Taylor - January 21, 2024

Israel Adesanya has responded after being called out by newly crowned UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis. Du Plessis (21-2 MMA) got his first crack at UFC gold this evening in Toronto when he challenged Sean Strickland (28-6 MMA) for the promotion’s undisputed 185lbs title.

Sean Strickland, UFC 297, UFC, MMA
Sean Strickland

Sean Strickland issues statement following UFC 297 title loss to Dricus Du Plessis: "I thought we got the job done"

Jeffrey Walter - January 21, 2024

Sean Strickland has issued a statement following his UFC 297 title loss to Dricus Du Plessis. Strickland (28-6 MMA) was looking to earn his first career UFC title defense when he collided with the streaking South African this evening in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.