- Alex Pereira thinks Dricus du Plessis is ducking him and would rather take on Jon Jones
- “Poatan” said beating “Stillknocks” is easier than making weight back at 185
- DDP insists he already agreed to fight “Poatan” in his fiery response
Alex Pereira and Dricus du Plessis have officially began trading shots.
Alex is ready to move on from Dricus if nothing serious happens
Pereira is still interested in returning to middleweight to dethrone Du Plessis. However, “Poatan” believes that the reigning middleweight champ is “scared” and he would rather move up and face Jon Jones if “Stillknocks” doesn’t take him seriously.
“Dricus definitely is an easier fight than fighting Jon Jones,” Pereira told Full Send MMA. “I think making weight will be harder than that fight. I did stop making weight at [185] because I said my body was going to break with two or three fights having to make that cut. Now I think I’ve rested long enough, I could definitely do the cut and make that fight happen, but it depends on him. I’ve showed the interest many times, but he never replied.”
“The way that he presents himself, he’s always jokes when he response. He’s never serious. He’s always trolling somehow when the subject is presented to him. He never takes serious, so he shows that he’s scared. So, instead of him, I just said, ‘Look, UFC let’s make me a better fight. Clown,” he added.
The champ hit back
Prior to UFC 306, Du Plessis already responded to Pereira’s callout and agreed to take on the Brazilian when he moves up to light heavyweight. After learning about Pereira’s recent dig, “Stillknocks” fired back and reiterated that he is not ducking “Poatan.”
“A scared clown how dare you! Now that’s taking it [too] far. I’ve already said I’m in to fight either you or @SStricklandMMA what more do you want or should I tag your translator?,” Du Plessis wrote on X.
a scared clown how dare you! Now that’s taking it to far. I’ve already said I’m in to fight either you or @SStricklandMMA what more do you want or should I tag your translator?
— Dricus Du Plessis (@dricusduplessis) September 16, 2024
As it stands, UFC president Dana White already confirmed that Sean Strickland would be Du Plessis’ next challenger. Pereira, meanwhile, is already set to defend his light heavyweight title against Khalil Rountree at UFC 309.
Watch Pereira’s full interview below:
