At UFC 297 at the Scotiabank Arena on Saturday, Dricus du Plessis defeated Sean Strickland via split decision to win the UFC middleweight title and make history as South Africa’s first world champion in the promotion.
In the co-main event, Mayra Bueno Silva was defeated by Raquel Pennington via unanimous decision, with Pennington using a strong finish over the final two rounds to claim the vacant women’s bantamweight title.
Du Plessis had the better of the early exchanges despite some sharp jabs from Strickland, who defeated Israel Adesanya to win the title in September.
In the following rounds, the 30-year-old kept pushing the American back, but even though he was successful in taking Strickland down, he was unable to hold Strickland on the mat for very long.
In order to keep Strickland guessing, Du Plesis kept changing up his striking, aiming for thudding kicks to the body and landing multiple left high kicks.
The fight went to the judges’ scorecards because Strickland, who had a cut on his left eye, opened up late in the final round with a barrage of powerful blows but was unable to finish. After winning by split decision, Du Plessis broke down in tears and thanked his coaches.
“To be honest, I felt like I made sure to take downs in every round. In an interview after the fight, a victorious Du Plesis said, “I could feel it was a close one, I definitely gave him the first round,” before criticising former champion Adesanya.
Dricus Du Plessis Wins the UFC Middleweight Title
At UFC 297, which took place live from the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada, Dricus du Plessis defeated Sean Strickland in a split decision to claim the title of UFC middleweight champion.
The beginning of the fight was close. Normally a fast starter, Du Plessis chose to start the fight cautiously, allowing Strickland to get the advantage early on with his signature jab.
Tarzan’s skill at defensive wrestling was crucial in the beginning. A few takedowns were managed by Dricus du Plessis, but Strickland swiftly got back up on his feet.
After three rounds, the fight was too close to call, with Du Plessis landing some hard blows, one of which cut Strickland’s eye. The constant pressure and volume from Strickland, however, had made DDP’s eye swell.
The damage was just one indicator of an extremely competitive title match. Although DDP had a great fourth round, the other rounds were hotly contested and generated a lot of discussion on social media due to varying scorecards. The audience erupted in applause as the two fighters gave it their all during an exhausting slugfest.
To put it mildly, Du Plessis’s ascent to the championship has been remarkable. The October 2020 UFC debut of the South African proved he was prepared for the opportunity after just six fights.
Robert Whittaker, Derek Brunson, and Darren Till have all been defeated by him during this run. He can now include Strickland in the list.
After an unexpected victory over Israel Adesanya, Strickland was crowned the champion. The match that needs to be made right now could be between the current champion and the former one.
It was widely believed that Strickland’s September opponent decision against Adesanya was made purely to buy more time to arrange a fight between Adesanya and Du Plessis. Rather, Strickland executed the huge upset, forcing Du Plessis to turn his attention to a different opponent. According to Du Plessis, he wasn’t The Last Stylebender; rather, he was chasing the belt.
“I stopped caring about Israel Adesanya as soon as Strickland took home the belt. Never have to give up on him. I don’t care, it’s okay. “I want to become a world champion and fulfil my destiny,” he stated to ESPN’s Jon Anik.
It’s reasonable to wonder if his desire to fight Adesanya will return now that he is aware of his destiny. He remains the most well-known fighter in the division, and UFC 300 in April could result in a massive blockbuster match.
Adesanya has stated that he will return in 2024, but he hasn’t committed to doing so anytime soon. Du Plessis is now the path to middleweight glory, regardless of Adesanya or any other contender.
