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Dricus du Plessis recently shared training snapshots that instantly caught the attention of fans. The reigning middleweight champion last competed at UFC 312 in February, where he secured a commanding unanimous decision victory in his rematch against Sean Strickland.
Although rumors suggest that du Plessis may defend his title against the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev in the coming months, no official confirmation has been made. However, that hasn’t stopped the South African from staying prepared.
On Thursday, ‘Stillknocks’ took to Instagram to share a glimpse of his latest training session at his longtime base, the CIT Performance Institute in Pretoria, where he showcased a shredded physique. He captioned the post:
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"The day you stop loving the grind is the day you need to find yourself a new line of work."
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Check out Dricus du Plessis' post below:
Fans responded to du Plessis' fight-ready training photos with a flurry of reactions, with many speculating that a fight announcement could be on the horizon in the coming days.
One fan wrote:
"Being in shape. Must be a fight coming up, or my bro is just disciplined."
Another wrote:
"This the dude handing Khamzat his first L."
Another commented:
"We want the Chimaev fight; anything else is a massive letdown. Give the fans what they want."
Check out some more reactions below:
‘Stillknocks’ captured the middleweight title with a hard-fought split decision victory over Strickland at UFC 297 in January 2024. He went on to successfully defend the belt for the first time with a submission win over former champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 in August.
When Dricus du Plessis shut the door on Khamzat Chimaev’s title shot following Saudi Arabia withdrawal
Khamzat Chimaev was slated to headline UFC Saudi Arabia in June 2024 against Robert Whittaker in a bout widely seen as a potential No. 1 contender clash. However, just one week out from the event, ‘Borz’ was forced to pull out due to reportedly serious health complications.
During an interview with Submission Radio last July, Dricus du Plessis voiced his frustration over the failed matchup with Chimaev. 'Stillknocks' also criticized Chimaev’s lack of competition at middleweight and emphasized that any talk of a title shot would be premature:
"I’ve been on that side of the area of not being able to fight, and it sucks. Right now, it just doesn’t even make sense to talk about it. He hasn’t fought one single ranked middleweight, not one, and to even put him in that conversation right now seems like we’re wasting time talking about it. He’s not in the run, and up until he proves that he deserves to be in that run, there’s no use in talking about it."
Check out Dricus du Plessis' comments below (9:35):
