Dricus du Plessis has risen as an unlikely staple in the UFC middleweight division. The South African contender is a former kickboxer and a former EFC middleweight and welterweight champion. Furthermore, he is also a former KSW welterweight titleholder. While UFC gold currently eludes him, his search is peaking.
While he initially devoted himself to kickboxing and even became a WAKO world champion, the lack of money in the sport led him to focus more on his studies.
Du Plessis attended the University of Pretoria in his hometown of Pretoria, where he initially pursued a degree in agricultural economics. Unfortunately, his heart wasn't in the degree and he recommitted himself to combat sports. This time, however, he embarked on an MMA career instead of returning to kickboxing.
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He has since emerged as an extremely entertaining fighter inside the octagon. Additionally, his UFC run has been stellar as Dricus du Plessis currently has five consecutive wins, four of which are finishes.
Dricus du Plessis's claim about African-born UFC champions ignited a fierce rivalry with Israel Adesanya
Dricus du Plessis frequently styles himself as the only true African fighter in the UFC. After journalists mentioned the likes of Francis Ngannou, Kamaru Usman, and Israel Adesanya as being the first African UFC champions, the South African middleweight disputed the claim.
He reasoned that 'The Nigerian Nightmare' represents the United States due to living there since he was eight years old. Dricus du Plessis made a similar statement about Israel Adesanya, whose family first moved to New Zealand when the future middleweight kingpin was 10 years old.
Meanwhile, Francis Ngannou only moved to France at the age of 26. Regardless, 'Stillknocks' differentiates himself from all three men by claiming that he has never left South Africa to live elsewhere, even punctuating his statements by saying that he trains on South African soil.
This led to pushback from both Adesanya and Usman, who took exception to du Plessis claiming to be more African than them due to his white ethnicity. As the two sides went back and forth, it peaked with Adesanya threatening to beat du Plessis on South African soil, which 'Stillknocks' has since dared him to.