Dricus Du Plessis believes bringing the UFC to South Africa will build a legacy that could stand the test of time.
On January 20, ‘Stillknocks’ etched his name into the history books by becoming the first South African fighter to claim a UFC world championship. Stepping into the main event spotlight in Toronto, Canada, Du Plessis engaged in an entertaining five-round clash with then-middleweight titleholder Sean Strickland at UFC 297. After 25 minutes of intense back-and-forth battling, we went to the scorecards where two of the three judges favored DDP.
Returning to his home country shortly after, Du Plessis received a hero’s welcome as South African fight fans finally had a UFC champion.
Scenes in South Africa as Dricus Du Plessis arrives with the UFC belt
— Bloody Elbow (@BloodyElbow) January 25, 2024
During a recent interview with Kmf 94.5, Dricus Du Plessis was asked the question that’s been on everyone’s mind since the gold was strapped around his waist — what’s next?
“Right now, I don’t have a [return] date, to be honest,” Du Plessis said. “When we get back to Petoran, we’re doing MRIs. We’ve done some scans, making sure of brain health. All of those things. We have a long career ahead of us. We just won a world title and this last year, it was fight after fight. Sometimes I was injured and having to take a fight. Even this fight, but sometimes when you get these opportunities, you don’t know when they are coming again. So even though you’re injured, you take the fight because it’s a massive opportunity to step towards the belt.”
DDP may not know when he will step back inside the Octagon, but he has a pretty good idea of who it will be against.
“Now we have the belt, so we don’t have to take unnecessary risks,” he continued. “We want the best fight for me, for South Africa, and for the people. The fight the people want to see is Israel Adesanya. That’s the fight that I want because that’s going to be the biggest fight that the world wants to see right now.”
Fans have been chomping at the bit to see Du Plessis and Adesanya lock up ever since their intense in-Octagon faceoff at UFC 290 last July.
Dricus Du Plessis Determined to Leave His Mark on the UFC
Aside from finally settling some unfinished business with ‘The Last Stylebender,’ Du Plessis is hoping to create a lasting legacy in MMA by leading the charge for UFC’s first-ever event in South Africa.
“Other than that, I want to bring the UFC to South Africa,” Du Plessis said. “That’s what needs to happen. That’s legacy, so if I have to wait it out a couple months, I’m willing to do that because fighting at a big event is one thing. Fighting and defending my belt is one thing, but that’s been done before. UFC on African soil. On home soil, that’s never been done before. That’s legacy. That’s going to be remembered forever. That’s what we want.”
DDP vs. Adesanya is certainly a main event worthy of the promotion’s debut on another continent, but in all likelihood, the UFC will want to see what kind of drawing power Du Plessis has stateside before taking his show halfway around the world.
Watch the full interview:
