In just under two weeks, Dricus Du Plessis will make the second defense of his middleweight strap in a much-anticipated rematch with Sean Strickland at UFC 312 in Australia on Feb. 8. In what became one of the best fights of 2024, both men left everything in the cage at the Scotiabank Arena, with Strickland badly busting up the challenger’s face and Du Plessis bloodying the champion.
The bout was incredibly close on the scorecards, but it was the South African who ultimately won by split decision to become the best 185-lb competitor in the world.
Sean Strickland Ready to Run It Back
While he did lose his belt by the thinnest of margins, Sean Strickland (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC) still proved that he is a top striker in the division after leaving the new champion’s face positively battered. However, where Dricus Du Plessis seemed to have the clear advantage was in the grappling department, landing six takedowns over the course of their first contest. Reaching out to middleweight king “Stillknocks” on social media via Full Violence, Sean Strickland has recently set forth a strange request for him, encouraging the champion to keep the fight on the feet.
https://twitter.com/Full_Violence/status/1881869980695966058/
“Listen, Dutchman, I’m going to need you to be a man,” Sean Strickland began “and I’m going to need you to stand up, not go to your knees, and we’re going to need to strike like men. I know you like to wrestle, and you like to choke people out and do some gay (expletive deleted), dude, but I’ll make a pact with you. You make a pact with me that we stand up like men, and we settle this like men.”
Sean Strickland Returned to Victory Lane, Du Plessis Not Buying Request
Last seen at UFC 302 this past summer, Strickland got himself back in the win column following his loss to Du Plessis by defeating former title challenger Paulo Costa by split decision.
Speaking with Fox Sports Australia ahead of their rematch, Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) appears to brush off Sean Strickland’s attempts at keeping takedowns out of their second encounter, reaffirming his mixed martial arts fighting style.
“Look, it’s a ridiculous thing to ask. If you want to make pacts about us just standing up, go do boxing,” Du Plessis said. “I don’t go into fights thinking I have to stand up or take the guy down. I do what the situation tells me to do. That’s what MMA fighters do. I’m comfortable everywhere.”
Though, the South African phenom did acknowledge that he very likely will stand with the American the whole time, highlighting that he has the gas tank and strength to give the challenger a rough night at the office.
“100 percent, I think we are most likely going to keep it standing. I know I have the cardio, I know I can push him back and I know I have the power to knock him out,” he said. “So for me, that’s great. Then, if the opportunity comes to get a takedown, it’s a decision you have to make immediately. If you see the moment, you take it.”
In his last trip to the UFC Octagon, Du Plessis battled previous five-time defending middleweight king Israel Adesanya at UFC 305, choking out “The Last Stylebender” to notch his first title defense.