"DDP isn't wrong at all" - South African actor feels "world made it about race" in fueling Dricus du Plessis' rivalry with Israel Adesanya

Dricus du Plessis and Israel Adesanya continue to revisit the origins of their rivalry and du Plessis' compatriot has weighed in. In a recent press conference to discuss their looming middleweight title fight, the former champion of 185 pounds stated how there is always a level of tension when you step into the cage with someone and this fight was no exception.

Adesanya did go on to say that the two had history together dating back years ago to a session at Tiger Muay Thai where he seemed to intimate the two combatants sparred a bit.

'The Last Stylebender' referenced how he felt Dricus du Plessis previously tried to discredit 'the three kings,' which referred to a trio of African champions at the time comprised of Adesanya, Kamaru Usman at welterweight, and Francis Ngannou at heavyweight.

The South African kingpin at middleweight claimed there were no tensions with Adesanya and refuted the idea that he ever discredited any of those aforementioned titleholders.

Thabo Rametsi is a well-regarded South African actor and film producer who offered his viewpoint on the specifics of this feud. On the Instagram post of the presser, courtesy of MMA Junkie, Rametsi commented:

"I'm black South African. Funny enough I don't think DDPs comments were meant to allude race at all. The world made it about race. He simply said of all those guys he was the only one to go out and win the championship being and training solely in Africa. Which is true. Its just a fact. He trains, lives, and returns to Africa after every fight.

"None of the three kings even learned or trained MMA or any martial in Africa (except Francis with boxing). DDP isn't wrong at all. If we remove the race element which is easy to if you just look at the facts. Either way. Im looking forward to the fight. Love both fighters."

[Image Courtesy: @mmajunkie comment section on Instagram]

Check out the Israel Adesanya vs. Dricus du Plessis presser that Thabo Rametsi commented on:

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Dricus du Plessis and his path to greatness at middleweight

Dricus du Plessis stated that if he were to beat Adesanya at UFC 305, he would be in the conversation of all-time great middleweights in mixed martial arts.

Leading into this massive August showdown in Australia, the 30-year-old certainly boasts a solid enough resume at 185 pounds. Dricus du Plessis bested previous UFC middleweight stalwarts Derek Brunson and Darren Till before clashing with his first opponent who was interwoven into the UFC middleweight title lineage.

The Pretoria native halted Robert Whittaker in the second round of their UFC 290 matchup, punching du Plessis' ticket to a title shot. He made good on his first title bid in the promotion by narrowly beating Sean Strickland via split decision.

That night in Toronto, Ontario, Canada saw DDP unwrest the gold from the man who had claimed it from Israel Adesanya beforehand. Following his title-winning effort in January at UFC 297, if Dricus du Plessis can make his first title defense against a former multi-time titleholder in the division, it can certainly pay dividends to his legacy.