Dricus du Plessis explains “anxiety” he faced against Sean Strickland, previews UFC 312 rematch

Dricus du Plessis believes he will face the same anxiety at UFC 312 compared to his first fight with Sean Strickland.

Over the past 12 months, du Plessis has etched his name into UFC middleweight history. The South African-born fighter became a world champion with a split-decision win against Strickland at UFC 297 in January.

'Stillknocks' later defended his throne for the first time by securing a fourth-round submission against Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in August.

On Feb. 8, 2025, du Plessis' second title defense will be a rematch against Strickland. The 30-year-old talked about the upcoming fight during an appearance on 'Breakfast with Martin Bester':

"When I'm standing in the octagon, the biggest almost, not fear, the biggest anxiety you feel is how hard does this guy punch? How fast is he? Is he going to catch me with one shot and it's over. You've never felt this personal physically, so you don't know how hard he hits. Now almost the element of surprise is gone, which makes it a lot easier not to play it safe."

Du Plessis followed up by saying:

"In that fight [against Sean Strickland], my first-ever title fight in the UFC, fighting for a world title there's a lot of pressure coming with that. So, in the beginning, you're kind of playing it safe feeling the guy out. This time around, there's going to be a feeling-out process, but I think it's going to be a lot more action a lot quicker." [3:21-3:41]

Listen to Dricus du Plessis' entire appearance on Breakfast with Martin Bester below (2:53):

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Khamzat Chimaev will keep close eye on Dricus du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland 2

Following his loss against Dricus du Plessis, Sean Strickland bounced back with a split-decision win against Paulo Costa at UFC 302 in June.

Meanwhile, top middleweight contender Khamzat Chimaev entered the title picture with a first-round submission against former world champion Robert Whittaker.

Chimaev's performance against Whittaker caught Dana White's attention, leading to the UFC CEO recommending him for a title shot in 2025. It's unclear if Chimaev will fight again or wait for the winner of Du Plessis vs. Strickland 2, but he's undoubtedly going to be taking notes.