Recent off his hard-fought title win over Sean Strickland at UFC 297, middleweight champ Dricus du Plessis confronted the press with a humorousness about his battered look. Jokingly addressing the harm sustained within the battle, he remarked, “Do you bear in mind how good-looking I used to be earlier than this battle? I appear to be a cauliflower now. However yeah, I’m fairly banged up proper now.”
As the brand new champion, one of many speedy questions revolved round his subsequent opponent. Du Plessis wasted no time in calling out former champ Israel Adesanya, expressing his curiosity in a fast turnaround for a battle at UFC 300 on April 13. Regardless of the toll of a five-round battle, du Plessis appeared open to the thought, stating, “I’m up for one more spherical in the event that they wish to go. Yeah, I don’t wish to put a timeline on it, however UFC 300 sounds wonderful.”
The potential matchup between du Plessis and Adesanya has been a long-anticipated one, with the rivalry escalating after a verbal altercation in July and Adesanya’s surprising loss to Strickland at UFC 293. Though Adesanya initially introduced a break from the game, latest teases of a comeback have fueled hypothesis.
Addressing the call-out, du Plessis clarified that it’s not private, emphasizing, “It’s nothing private. It’s not private in any respect. That’s simply the battle the followers wish to see. I wish to battle one of the best competitors.” Regardless of their bitter historical past, together with a racially charged debate over the “actual” African champion, du Plessis sees the potential bout as one thing followers are enthusiastic about.
Whereas undefeated Khamzat Chimaev threw his title into the combo by difficult du Plessis for UFC 300, the brand new champion dismissed the thought. Responding to Chimaev’s tweet, du Plessis remarked, “Yeah, however he mentioned that to Jon Jones. Who takes that man significantly?”
Regardless of considerations a couple of fast turnaround after a grueling battle, du Plessis asserted his place among the many elite middleweights. With doubts about his cardio now hopefully put to relaxation, he concluded, “If not, carry on doubting, I don’t care. At your personal demise, after all.” The potential conflict between du Plessis and Adesanya provides anticipation to UFC 300, and an official announcement is awaited.
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