Dricus Du Plessis and Sean Strickland aren’t exactly on the same page.
The two middleweights went to war in the UFC 297 main event. After five rounds of back-and-forth action, it’d be Du Plessis who got the split decision victory as well as the UFC Middleweight title. The championship belt was coming home to South Africa.
Du Plessis Says Strickland Told Him: ‘No, You Definitely Beat Me’
In the days that followed, Strickland has taken much issue with the result. The controversial contender blames the loss on an alleged headbutt from Du Plessis and argues he was the real winner of the fight, despite what the official scorecards read.
This surprises Du Plessis, who says Strickland was just the opposite right after their matchup concluded.
“This is the first time publicly I’ll say this, he came to me in the cage right before they announced me as the new champion. I went to him and I shook his hand, and I said, ‘you’re a warrior, well done, was a great fight’. And he said, ‘no, you definitely beat me,'” Du Plessis told SuperSport.
“He said to me, ‘you deserve it, you won that fight, you beat me’… I said, I also think so. I have to agree with you on that. After I won the fight. You could see in his face, he knew. When the ref held our hands… He knew he wasn’t winning that fight.”
The Aftermath
Du Plessis says Strickland kept the same energy for the rest of the fight night, but that’d soon change when Strickland started campaigning on social media for a potential rematch.
“Of course, he talks about the headbutt, which is not true,” Du Plessis continued. “I remember the exact punch according with when his eyes start to bleed. Then, afterwards when we went to we went in the doctor’s rooms, he came to me and he said, ‘you’re a warrior, I wouldn’t have wanted to lose to anybody else because, you deserve this’.
“But then he goes on Twitter and he says, ‘you will never be a champion’ or something along those lines. Just the way he said it, to ask for a rematch is one thing in a way you want to. But I have to say, I have nothing against the guy. What I’ve experienced is not really I think he’s an emotional guy. Let’s let’s be honest, but I don’t think he’s a bad dude.”
‘There Was Never Bad Blood For Me’
Sean Strickland isn’t Du Plessis’ only rival in the middleweight division. The new UFC Champion still has a score to settle with former champ Israel Adesanya, which could very be well his next fight.
As far as heated rivalries go in the UFC, Du Plessis explains this one might be a bit one-sided.
“A big thing with that is there was never bad blood for me,” Du Plessis said of Adesanya. “He tried to make it that way because I said something that was true and he didn’t like it because it took his niche. I said it and here we are. Where did my belt go? Where are we now? We are in South Africa. I am home and I brought the mountain to Africa, where I live. So, I mean, that is all said and done. The big thing is he made it personal for himself.”
Du Plessis Addresses His Rocky Relationship With Adesanya
Don’t expect Du Plessis to go out drinking with Adesanya anytime soon. The UFC Champion is on a mission to prove he’s better than what came before him.
“Do I like Israel Adesanya? No. Will we have a beer? No,” Du Plessis added. “I don’t think he’s a fun guy. He does not look like somebody that I would be friends with. Don’t know him that well, just the way he acts and it’s fine, like everybody doesn’t like each other. It’s not how the world works. But, Sean Strickland, will I have a beer with him? 100%. I think we can, there is a world where we can be friends. A guy like Robert Whittaker? Sure.
“Me and Israel Adesanya, I don’t think we like each other. But, like I said, we don’t know each other. But when when it comes to the fighting, for me, it’s not a person. The reason why I wanted anything to do with him was because he had a title. Right now, I have the title, and then he made the threats of he’ll come to South Africa and and beat me on home soil. That’s not gonna happen.
“I wanna show the world that it’s not gonna happen,” Du Plessis said. It’s a completely different environment than fighting even in Vegas then fighting in South Africa. That’s why it’s so important to me to get that fight right here at home.”
