Dricus du Plessis, 30, of Hatfield, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa is the reigning middleweight champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which is based in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. He is the mixed martial arts promotion’s first ever champion from South Africa.
On October 10, 2020, du Plessis made his UFC debut at “UFC Fight Island 5” in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates where he knocked out Markus Perez via punches. Prior to this, he competed in Extreme Fighting Championship from 2013 to 2017 and Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki from 2018 to 2018.
On July 8, 2023, du Plessis defeated Robert Whittaker via technical knockout via punches at “UFC 290” in Paradise. It was a UFC Middleweight Championship title eliminator.
Fighting out of Anaheim, California, USA, Sean Strickland, 32, became the new UFC Middleweight Champion on September 10, 2023. He dethroned then champion Israel Adesanya via unanimous decision at “UFC 293” in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
On January 20, 2024, du Plessis challenged Strickland in the main event of “UFC 297” in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The South African challenger defeated the American defending champion via split decision.
Losing to du Plessis downgraded Strickland’s professional MMA record to 28 wins and 6 losses. On the other hand, the new UFC Middleweight Champion has 20 wins and 2 losses.
CONAN Daily 