Dricus du Plessis will be back in the octagon to defend his UFC middleweight belt this weekend – and bookmakers are backing him to do just that.
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Du Plessis memorably defended his UFC middleweight belt with an impressive submission victory over Israel Adesanya last August.
He is now set for a rematch with controversial American Sean Strickland.
Strickland, who has been with the UFC since March 2014, has a career record of 29-6 (16-6 in the UFC), while Du Plessis sports a 22-2 record heading into UFC 312.
He is unbeaten in his past 10 fights and has a perfect 8-0 record in the UFC.
Big favourite
Du Plessis and Strickland shared “Fight of the Night” honours, which took place at UFC 297 in January 2024 and saw the South African star claim a hard-fought points victory.
The two will go into battle again at UFC 312, which takes place on Saturday, 8 February at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.
Factoring in the time difference, the main event is only likely to begin after 05:00 (SA time) on Sunday, 9 February.
The exact time of the bout will depend on how long some of the earlier bouts last.
Leading South African bookmakers Betway have installed Du Plessis as 5/10 favourite for the fight, with Strickland on offer at 8/5.
Dricus du Plessis chasing more history in the UFC
It would be an incredible feat for Du Plessis to once again successfully defend his title, having most recently overpowered Adesanya through a devastating chokehold, consigning himself to defeat by submission.
Interestingly, though, Strickland has now suggested making a ‘pact’ to not take the fight to the ground.
“Listen Dutchman, I’m going to need you to be a f*cking man,” Strickland said in a video posted to social media.
“I’m gonna need you to stand up, not go to your knees, and we’re gonna need to strike like men. I know you like to wrestle and you like to f*cking choke people out … but I’ll make a pact with you, you make a pact with me that we f*cking stand up like f*cking men and we settle this sh*t like men.”
However, this request was predictably laughed off by Du Plessis.
“Look, it’s a ridiculous thing to ask. If you want to make pacts about us just standing up, go do boxing,” Du Plessis told FOX Sports Australia.
“I don’t go into fights thinking I have to stand up or take the guy down. I do what the situation tells me to do. That’s what MMA fighters do. I’m comfortable everywhere.
“Sean Strickland knows a lot of one-liners to sound tough, but I expose fake tough guys. And as for him now again saying let’s make this pact? What’s the purpose of a pact after we saw what happened the last time? Plus, I’m not here to make pacts – I’m here to win.”
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