Dricus Du Plessis still wants to settle his grudge match with Israel Adesanya but not until he’s champion.
With Adesanya (24-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) losing his middleweight title to Sean Strickland (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) in this past Saturday’s UFC 293 headliner, original No. 1 contender Du Plessis has shifted his focus to Strickland.
“For me right now, Strickland is the target. That’s how it is for me,” Du Plessis told Middle Easy. “I’m not No. 1 contender in the world to fight Adesanya. I’m No. 1 contender in the world to fight Sean Strickland, No. 1 contender in the world to fight for the belt. I don’t care who has the belt. It’s about getting that title.”
That doesn’t mean Du Plessis (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) has forgotten about Adesanya. Ideally, Du Plessis wants to beat Strickland then make his first title defense against Adesanya at UFC 300.
“The big fight with me and Adesanya is still on the table,” Du Plessis said. “It’s still there. We can still capitalize on that because he does deserve a hiding. He does deserve what’s coming to him from me. How I see this in my mind is I fight Strickland, become the middleweight champion, and the first title defense is against Israel Adesanya at UFC 300. In a perfect world, that’s how I would like it to play out.”
Du Plessis emerged as No. 1 contender when he finished former champion Robert Whittaker by TKO at UFC 290 in July. The South African fighter couldn’t make a quick turnaround for September due to a foot injury but said he’ll be ready by the end of the year.
“I would love to actually fight in December,” Du Plessis said. “I’ll be ready to go in December. That would give me five fights in the past year, and I’ve been active. I want to stay active as long as I can.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 293.
