PERTH, Australia – Dricus Du Plessis is willing to throw down with anyone, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have his thoughts and opinions on the meritocracy of his division.
The UFC middleweight champion, who completed his first title defense with a win over Israel Adesanya this past Saturday in the main event of UFC 305, is expected to face Sean Strickland next. This is a fight that interests Du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC), but not one he finds to be the most logical.
“Robert Whittaker deserves the shot,” Du Plessis told reporters at the UFC 305 post-fight press conference. “I think he’s being done over. Whittaker beat (Paulo) Costa. Sean Strickland’s only saving grace is the fact he went to a decision with me. That’s it. Robert Whittaker beat Costa in the more spectacular fashion, I believe, than Sean Strickland did. Then willing to step up and fight Khamzat (Chimaev), he pulls out, Whittaker fights (Ikram Aliskerov who is) not a nobody in the sense of he’s not ranked. He can only lose to a great fighter. He’s an amazing fighter. He’s really good. Whittaker made him look like he was fighting an amateur. And what does he get for it? Nothing.
“Then he says, ‘OK, I’ll fight Khamzat again.’ So if he beats Khamzat and you’re not giving him a title shot? He’s getting the short end of the stick. But that’s not on me. I’ll fight whoever. Strickland right now is the fight people want, but Whittaker is definitely the one that’s being done over, in my opinion. He’s more deserving, but life’s not fair.”
UFC CEO Dana White said in the build up to UFC 305 that Strickland was next in line for the title shot. This surprised many since Robert Whittaker was considered by many as the most deserving contender.
Whittaker was supposed to fight Chimaev last month in a title eliminator, but Chimaev pulled out for health issues. Whittaker went on to knock out replacement Aliskerov. Whittaker and Chimaev are rescheduled to fight Oct. 26 at UFC 308. Whittaker is 2-0 since his loss to Du Plessis.
Strickland defeated Paulo Costa in June. It’s his only fight since losing his belt to Du Plessis in January in a close split decision.
Du Plessis is not bothered by the competitiveness of their first fight. He thinks he should be fighting Whittaker next, but has no problem revisiting the Strickland matchup.
“I don’t care about silencing the people (who say I lost to Strickland),” Du Plessis said. “Going into that Strickland fight, now I know. I’ve been in there with him. He can’t handle what I have. He can’t handle what I have to offer, so this time I can finish him. Yeah, he beat Izzy, but now we have a comparison. That’s how you finish someone.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 305.
