SUMMARY
- Dricus du Plessis becomes the new Middleweight Champion at UFC 297.
- In his post-fight interview, Dricus shared his opinion on the fight and his opponent after winning.
The South African flag is high as their best MMA fighter, Dricus du Plessis, takes home gold for the nation. Becoming the first UFC Middleweight Champion from South Africa after beating former champion Sean Strickland at UFC 297 via split decision. Also going full five rounds for the first time in his MMA career, he was able to prove his mentality and establish his dominance.
The bout was a display of elite striking and endurance, with both UFC fighters giving it their all. Strickland just fell short after upping Dricus du Plessis in the first two rounds. Du Plessis, who has never been known to be pushed to the limits in such a way against a cardio machine in Strickland, did prove that when it comes to the big stage, he has the potential.
In his post-fight interview, the South African shared his opinion on the fight and his opponent after winning. He stated, “He has a super super strong jab, it’s almost as he doesn’t open his hand he has a clenched fist, every time he hits you with that jab it’s like somebody hits you with a rock”. Dricus praised Strickland’s powerful jabs and punches and how they were his strongest weapon during the match.
This was also mentioned by former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, who lost his title to Sean at UFC 293. The last stylebender too struggled a lot in countering and defending against Strickland’s unique but effective jab. He compared it to a hammer fist based on his Philly shell stance, much lot alike Floyd Mayweather Jr., which rocked him many times during the fight.
Dricus du Plessis shares gameplan that neutralized Sean Stricland’s offense at UFC 297
Even after many questioned Dricus du Plessis’s cardio and possibly losing the first two rounds, the middleweight was able to turn the tables in the last rounds. He had a visible swollen eye in the early stages of the match incurred from one of Strickland’s jabs, which could have compromised his vision and striking. The UFC fighter, in the face of adversity, stuck to his game plan and got the results.
Later In his interview with sports reporter Megan Olivi, he explained his game plan going into the fight. Dricus shared, “I keep on pressuring pressuring throwing my own offense in the first round I didn’t get enough offense off but I was fine with it that’s why I went for the takedown to level the playing field that was the plan in my head”.
This was the South African’s strategy against Strickland, which was to keep the pressure on all the time and not let him move forward in attack. He also used takedowns if his offense and striking fell short in any round to keep himself in the game.
He further complimented his opponent for making him go the distance in one of his toughest career challenges. The judge’s scorecard would end with two judges scoring 48-47 to Dricus du Plessis and one scoring 48-47 to Sean Strickland, ending up with a split decision win for the South African.