Dricus Du Plessis ‘Happy’ To Get Either Title Shot Or No. 1 Contender, Tells Paulo Costa To ‘Stand In Line’

"Stillknocks" is only interested in the biggest fights in his division.

Dricus Du Plessis 1
Dricus Du Plessis - Image Credit @MMAFighting Twitter
  • Dricus Du Plessis is weighing his chances of facing the No. 1 middleweight contender or getting a title shot
  • “Stillknocks” doesn’t see Paulo Costa as a relevant opponent at this point

Dricus Du Plessis passed the biggest test of his soaring UFC career by stopping No. 5 middleweight contender Derek Brunson at UFC 285. Moving on to the next one, “Stillknocks” stressed that he has no time for anybody outside the Top 5 and will prefer either a title shot or the No. 1 fighter in the division.

Only going for the fight that makes sense

Speaking to reporters in his UFC 285 post-fight news conference, Du Plessis tried to read what the UFC might come up for him now that he is set to break into the middleweight division’s Top 5. According to “Stillknocks,” Robert Whittaker could be in the mix but he will be “happy” to jump straight to Israel Adesanya or even reigning champion Alex Pereira.

“I know they maybe wanted to do the (Robert) Whittaker vs. (Khamzat) Chimaev fight. I don’t know what the plans are with Chimaev because he wants to fight here, and then he wants to fight there. I’m not sure,” Du Plessis assessed. “I think they’re waiting to see what happens with (Israel Adesanya) and (middleweight champion Alex) Pereira because if Izzy wins this fight against Pereira, I’m the only guy in the top five he hasn’t fought – so that makes sense. If Pereira wins, I’m not sure what they want to do. At the end of the day, it must either be probably a No. 1 contender fight or a title shot. I’m happy with either of those.”

Paulo is no longer relevant for Dricus

When asked if he is still interested in the fan-favorite Costa, Du Plessis quickly dismissed the idea.

“Paulo Costa had his chance,” he explained. “He’s behind me right now, so I’m not even focusing on him. I called him out previously because he was ranked in front of me, but right now he can stand in line.”

As it stands, Adesanya and Pereira are set for a title fight rematch at UFC 287 which means Du Plessis has a better chance of getting Whittaker instead.

Published on March 6, 2023 at 1:49 pm
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