"He definitely looked dazed" - When Dricus du Plessis shared his reaction to Dana White pushing him to "press charges" against Sean Strickland

Dricus du Plessis previously responded to Dana White advocating for legal action against Sean Strickland. The reigning middleweight champion is locked in to defend his title once again in a rematch against Sean Strickland, headlining UFC 312 this weekend at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.

The two fighters have harbored intense animosity toward each other for quite some time, which erupted into a heated brawl when they crossed paths at UFC 296 in December 2023—just a month before their initial showdown at UFC 297.

Strickland and du Plessis were spotted seated near one another at the T-Mobile Arena, and shortly after the camera moved away, 'Tarzan' was seen leaping over chairs to land multiple blows on the South African before security quickly intervened to break up the chaos.

Check out the altercation between Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland below:

During his appearance on the Overdogs Podcast in January 2024, 'Stillknocks' revealed that following the altercation, UFC's top executives approached him to check on his well-being and inquired if he wanted to press charges against Strickland:

"Dana and Hunter [Campbell] actually came to where we were seated, and there were police, security, and everybody around us. They were like, 'Listen, are you okay?' because Sean got escorted out. I said, 'Yeah, I'm 100% fine.' They were like, 'Sh*t, we're so sorry about this. This shouldn’t have happened.' They said, 'Listen, this was assault 100%. This was terrible.

He continued:

"They have him at the back, and you have the right to press charges now against Sean Strickland because that was assault.' And me being from South Africa, I go, 'What? That looked like a good old Friday night.' I got a few shots in. I think he definitely looked dazed."

Check out Dricus du Plessis' comments below (44:18):

'Stillknocks' went on to dethrone the outspoken American at UFC 297, securing the 185-pound title with a gritty split decision victory.

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When Dana White held himself accountable for UFC 296 altercation between Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland

At the UFC 296 post-fight press conference, Dana White admitted he couldn’t be angry with Dricus du Plessis and Sean Strickland's melee, as he himself had placed them near each other.

The UFC CEO took full responsibility for the entire incident, acknowledging it was his error and vowing not to repeat it in the future. He said:

"So what kind of an a**hole sits Strickland next to du Plessis? This a**hole, that’s who. I do every seating assignment every week... It’s my job to make sure that stuff doesn’t happen. If I wasn’t an a**hole, those two wouldn’t have been sitting next to each other. It blows my mind that I let that slip. It just blows my mind."

Check out Dana White's comments below (3:49):