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In his quest to climb the UFC pound-for-pound rankings, Dricus du Plessis has drawn widespread attention, especially as many debate how his unique skillset will fare against elite opponents like Khamzat Chimaev and Alex Pereira.
The South African champion is unbeaten in the UFC and has now recorded two title defenses, recently beating Sean Strickland at UFC 312 to retain his belt. His relentless pace and unorthodox striking have set him apart in a highly competitive middleweight division.
Ex-UFC champion Henry Cejudo recently weighed in on how 'Stillknocks' would match up against Chimaev and Pereira. When asked about how du Plessis’ style will hold up against 'Poatan', Cejudo said on the Pound 4 Pound podcast:
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“Even though I do believe that Pereira is going to beat Magomed Ankalaev, I’ll definitely put my money with DDP. I think DDP, stylistically, is a problem dude, and I know DDP is going to go in there and f***ing wrestle. And with the grappling, I think that could be very problematic. But there’s one thing that I will say is he will need to be careful because Alex Pereira does a really good job of countering, and there’s a lot of little sloppy things that DDP does."
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Breaking down a potential du Plessis vs. Chimaev bout, Cejudo said:
“Congratulations to DDP, he put on a masterpiece [against Sean Strickland]. I personally thinks he beats up Khamzat Chimaev. I don't think he'll easily submit, I think DDP is scrambly."
Check out Henry Cejudo's comments below (10:07):
Islam Makhachev comments on potential fights against Dricus du Plessis and Belal Muhammad
Islam Makhachev’s ambitions for UFC glory have reached new heights as he laid out his plans to become a champion in three weight divisions. In a recent interview, the current lightweight champion declared his desire to add more belts to his collection. His bold statements have put both Dricus du Plessis, the middleweight king, and Belal Muhammad, the welterweight champion, on notice.
With Muhammad just one division above, a fight between 'Remember the Name' and Makhachev would be massive. However, they've trained together and share a friendship, which could complicate matters. Commenting on the matchup, the lightweight champion said:
“We have Belal there and he defends his belt soon, but me and Belal have same manager, Ali [Abdelaziz]. We’ll sit and talk. This is my dream to be double champion. I don’t want to leave the sport before I take second belt.”
Opening up on his desire to become the first-ever three-division champion in the UFC, Makhachev had this to say about potentially fighting du Plessis, the reigning 185-pound titleholder:
“I can be three division [champion] also. Just give me the chance, that’s it. I will fight with [Dricus] du Plessis, give me the chance, I will fight him also. I swear if Dana White sends me the contract, I will fight him also.” [Quotes translated from Russian to English]
Check out Islam Makhachev's comments below:
